


The Oxford Romance

by oxford_romantic



Series: The Oxford Romance [1]
Category: Tom Hiddleston - Fandom
Genre: AU, Alternate Universe - Professors, Alternate Universe - Student/Teacher, Eventual Smut, F/M, Female Character of Color, Original Character(s), Professor Tom, Romance, Smut, Teacher-Student Relationship, professor!tom, professor/student
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-05-03
Updated: 2015-10-23
Packaged: 2018-03-28 22:10:39
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 21
Words: 34,741
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3871570
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/oxford_romantic/pseuds/oxford_romantic
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Graduate student Rosario Jones is smart, hardworking, and very strong-willed. She has just been assigned as a TA to a new professor- Professor Hiddleston is cold, aloof, and unbelievably attractive… and he knows it. Will the two be able to work together or continue to clash? Or will they overcome their differences perhaps a little too well?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Dismissals

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is my first fic and all mistakes are my own. Feel free to comment or give any sort of criticism or feedback!

Tom rarely ran late. If there was one thing- and if he was being honest there were many- he could pride himself on, it was his punctuality. His students had often commented that they could set their watches by their professor’s timeliness.

This day, however, was an extreme exception. He had not woken up to his alarm because he had forgotten to set it.  He had forgotten to set it because he had been drunk and distracted the night before. The drunkenness had left him with dark shadows under his eyes and a slight hangover. The distraction had left him with a blonde stranger to usher out of his bed.

The memory of the angry blonde as he practically pushed her out of his flat, promising to call as he tried to shepherd her out before she realized that they had never exchanged numbers, brought on a fresh wave of nausea. Whatever Tom’s faults in the personal side of his life, his professionalism had always been outstanding, which made his tardiness feel like even more of an affront. In a practiced and nauseating jog, Tom checked his watch as he hurried down the university hall. He was lucky it was just a meeting he was twenty-five minutes late to and not one of his classes even though the meeting was with one of his more important colleagues. Dr Hamilton had been characteristically vague about the purpose of this Monday morning meeting. Hamilton was a particularly famous and revered academic with a ruddy face and grey hair. He particularly seemed to enjoy making his lesser colleagues jump through hoops for him.

Tom wished his footsteps didn’t echo quite so loudly as he neared Hamilton’s office and could already hear the older man’s droning voice through the open door.

“Yes, well Professor Hiddleston is one of our younger tutors but I’m sure you’ll find a lot to learn from him-“ Tom saw Hamilton smile over the shoulder of a small female figure as he came into the doorway. “Ah, there you are Tom”.

The girl Hamilton had been talking to turned around and Tom felt his stomach drop for the umpteenth time that day. She was short and dark, with bright flashing eyes, full pouty lips, wildly waving hair, and an expression of thinly veiled irritation.

“So sorry I’m late” Tom rushed forward, thankful his breathing was only slightly laboured.

“Troubles this morning?” Hamilton offered. Tom had prayed that he didn’t look as shit as he felt, but Dr Hamilton’s amused smile seemed to guess exactly what Tom’s troubles had been. “Tom, I’d like you to meet your new TA, Rosario-Immacolata Jones. Miss Jones is one of our Masters students. Rosario, this is Tom Hiddleston.”

The girl gave him a small, cool smile and Tom shuffled forward to shake her hand. Her palm was also small and cool against his sweaty one.

“It’s nice to meet you, Professor,” she said.  Tom nodded hastily, releasing her hand. She smelled pretty too.  

“Forgive me, but isn’t a bit late in the semester to take on a new TA?” Tom spoke again to Hamilton and tried to make his tone seem inoffensive.

The old man gave a little laugh and waddled over to his desk. “Miss Jones was originally with Dr Malkin, who does not seem like she’ll be out of the hospital any time soon. Instead of throwing away her semester, we decided to place her with you instead.” Hamilton turned back to the girl. “Miss Jones, I’m sure you’ll catch on quickly. Dr Hiddleston structures his courses in very similar way to Malkin and I’m sure some of the material will overlap. Right, Tom?”

Tom gave a noncommittal nod, “Right”.  Hamilton beamed; as condescending as he could be, Hamilton was also very dedicated to the faculty and students in an almost paternal way.  

Miss Jones- Tom had already forgotten her ridiculous first name- turned back to Hamilton, “Thank you so much, Dr Hamilton.” Tom tried to ignore how surprisingly seductive her slightly scratchy voice was.

“You are very welcome, Miss Jones. I’m sure you two will get on marvelously.” Hamilton gave her a beaming smile of her own and shook her hand. It was almost laughable how her smooth brown hand looked against his fat, wrinkled, ruddy one.

“You two get on, now.” He gave Tom a nod, “Hiddleston.”

With that, they were dismissed.

* * *

 

 Sari and the tall professor made their way to his office in silence.

Her irritation at having to get up so early this morning had only been amplified at her new advisor’s lateness. Sari loathed early mornings and she loathed lateness. She hoped this wasn’t a sign of how seriously Professor Hiddleston would take her.

He was walking slightly ahead of her and did not seem to notice that she was practically jogging to keep up with him. He was tall and thin, in a nice way, and had been much younger and handsomer than she expected, in despite of the pinched look that had never left his face.

Her previous advisor, Dr Malkin, had been a greying woman with a severe face and biting intelligence. Sari had adored her.

Hiddleston abruptly stopped in front of door and reached into his messenger bag to pull out a pair of keys. Sari nervously fiddled with the hem of her dress as he unlocked the door and ushered her inside. His office was clean and neat save for an incredibly messy desk.

“This is my office-“ Hiddleston had a lovely voice “-I suppose you’ve come at a better time in the semester. We’ve just finished with Seneca and are starting with Virgil.” He gestured for her to sit down and gave her a piercing look as he sat across from her. “Are you at all familiar with reading Latin”? He asked, a single brow rose condescendingly.

Sari tried to control her deepening irritation at that remark; she’d been reading Latin for nearly ten years. _She was only trying to get her masters on the subject._ “Yes, I’m sufficient in both classical Greek and Latin”. She said stiffly and sat up more straightly in her seat.

It was as quick as a flash, but Sari thought she saw the professor’s eyes rove over her body as she straightened.  His thin mouth formed a tight smile. It didn’t reach his eyes.

“Very good.” He glanced down and started rummaging in the desk. Sari missed Dr Malkin even more in that moment. She may have been austere but she had never spoken down to her. Sari felt a rushed of delayed gratitude for the woman and promised herself she’d visit her soon. Professor Hiddleston pulled out a packet of papers. “This is my syllabus and reading list. I expect you to read and familiarize yourself with the materials as soon as possible. As a TA, I expect you to assist with grading and the like. Is that clear?”

Sari glanced over the papers and tucked a stray strand of hair behind her ear. “Crystal,” she replied and looked back up. The professor had very blue eyes, although they seemed slightly bloodshot.

“Well, that’s everything. Class is at three o’clock today.” He said, he plucked a pen from a jar on his desk and began to mark a stack of papers. Despite herself, Sari bristled at his rude dismissal.

He looked up when she did not immediately leave, that single brow raised again.

“I was actually pursuing a research degree with Dr Malkin.” Sari watched his face darken slightly. “I suppose you’ll have to supervise my research now.”

Professor Hiddleston set his pen down. “I suppose I will”. He made it sound as though it was the most trying thing he could think of.  “Email me your abstract. I’ll try to look over it before class.” With that he resumed his work and Sari finally stood, her hands in tight little fists.

“Thank you, Professor. It’s been a pleasure.”  She strode for the door and closed it without bothering to look back. It wasn’t until she was out of the building that she realized how sarcastic those words had sounded.

* * *

 

Tom had felt regretful the minute his office door had slammed shut. The noise had done nothing to help his headache.  He felt slightly bad as he thought about how rude he had been to his new TA. He didn’t even know why he had been so rude. His hangover isn’t that bad. True, he did have a bad morning but he had had worse.  Maybe she had surprised him? The last thing he expected Hamilton to want was to pawn off some research student.

And what a student to pawn off- Miss (Imelda?) Jones was very attractive. If they had met under any other circumstances he would have most certainly made a move. He felt fairly sure that at this point any move he could make would be rebuffed- her mouthing off as she stormed out of his office reminded him of the blonde this morning.

Tom was sensing an unfortunate pattern.  

Tom certainly did well with women. He was tall, handsome, charming, and in some way suspected his successes had to do with the fantasy of sleeping with a professor.

Thinking of the blonde had reminded him of his hangover and as he stood to go make a cuppa, he heard a _ping_ from his computer. There was a new email:

From: Rosario-Immacolata Jones < jonesir@ox.ac.uk >

Subject: Abstract

Professor-

Attached are abstract, methods, and preliminary research.

Many thanks,

RIJ

Tom rubbed the back of his neck. It was going to be a long day.


	2. Second Chances

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Graduate student Rosario Jones is smart, hardworking, and very strong-willed. She has just been assigned as a TA to a new professor- Professor Hiddleston is cold, aloof, and unbelievably attractive… and he knows it. Will the two be able to work together or continue to clash? Or will they overcome their differences perhaps a little too well?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is my first fic and all mistakes are my own. Feel free to comment or give any sort of criticism or feedback!

Sari had a temper and she hated herself for it. It wasn’t that she hated being mad; no, that part she felt fine about. She strongly believed that women should be able to be angry and not feel bad about it.

What she hated was fulfilling the stereotype of “fiery Italian woman.” With a name like Rosario, many people- mostly men- assumed she was some Sophia Loren, feisty future housewife type. This she was most _definitely_ not. She also hated the stereotype of angry black woman. This she could occasionally be, she conceded.

She seemed to be doomed to a lifetime of angry stereotypes. For this reason, she worked very hard to keep her temper cool and this made her open irritation at Professor Hiddleston feel like even more of a smack.

 _He really did deserve it though_. She thought as she put her bag down on the café table. She had more than a few hours before her class with Hiddleston and she figured she should spend them working. There was no point in making the trip back to her flat. She poured herself a cup from the teapot she had ordered and opened her laptop. She found Hiddleston’s email address on his syllabus and quickly sent him some of her research work.

It was too much to hope that he would be as helpful or informative as Malkin was. He seemed to be the quintessential full-of-himself academic. Sari took her degree very seriously. It was hard enough as is to be a woman in the academic world. Malkin had understood that. Hiddleston had vaguely reminded her of the idiots she went to undergrad with, the ones who didn’t take her seriously until she came out on top. This thought irritated her even more. She shouldn’t have to work hard to be taken seriously. She should work hard to be brilliant and because she loved it.

She perused Hiddleston’s syllabus and reading list. She let out a sigh of relief when she realized that she had read most of this in undergrad herself. Luckily, the classics materials tended to be the same no matter the uni or level. It was hardly an ever-changing field. That meant more time for her research.

Sari sipped her tea and began to take notes for Hiddleston’s upcoming lecture. She quickly realized it was pretty pointless. Without having attended one of his classes, she hardly knew where to begin. _The jerk could have at least given her something to work with_. She was beginning to dread being TA for this class.

The term had begun in August and she had been Malkin’s TA for just over two months. She hadn’t been there long enough to take over Dr Malkin’s class, according to board. The class had been particularly small anyways and the board thought it easier simply to cancel than to find another instructor.

She had no idea why Dr Hamilton had placed her with Hiddleston instead one of the other professors. He just seemed so young. _And surprisingly fit_. She’d heard from other students that he was known for being the handsome professor but she hadn’t been prepared for him to look like that. He could have been in films with those looks.

Rosario rolled her eyes. He certainly seemed to have the ego to go along with those film star good looks.

 _Oh well_ , she thought. _I only have to work with him until the end of this semester…assuming Malkin gets better by the time of the spring semester._

*

She arrived to class ten minutes early and was surprised to see it was already partially full of students. She took a seat in the first row, as far in the corner as she could, nearest the window. It seemed the typical classics group. Sari wondered if anyone had a crush on the handsome professor or if his prickly demeanor had squashed any fantasies. She was willing to bet on the latter.

At exactly three o’clock, Hiddleston walked in. He looked much better than he had this morning; his eyes weren’t so bloodshot and he had lost the pained expression. If possible, he was even more handsome. He had short, curly dark blond hair cropped close on the sides and higher on top. He was wearing the same pale blue dress shirt and navy slacks. He gave the class a wide smile, “Good afternoon. I hope you found _The Aeneid_ interesting! I’m sure we’ll have a great discussion today and we’ll start with Book I and draw on the Senecan philosophy. But first, I’d like to introduce our new TA,” he turned that wide smile onto her. Sari felt the class’s eyes follow and gave what she hoped wasn’t a fake-looking smile. “This is Rosario-Immacolata Jones. She’ll be here to help out.” He nodded at her, his eyes lingering a touch longer than was necessary.

“Right. Book I”.

If Rosario was perfectly honest, she paid far better attention to the professor than the lecture. He was far more animated than he had been this morning; he was a surprisingly engaging lecturer but seemed to be particularly stern. _Maybe to make up for his youth,_ Rosario mused.

He certainly seemed to know his stuff and as Sari sat and listened to him speak, she began to feel slightly more optimistic than she had this morning.

* * *

 

The lecture and discussion had gone better than Tom had hoped. The TA was packing up her belongings as students filtered out and some of the more dedicated formed the usual queue of post-class questioners. Tom sidestepped the crowd and approached her desk.

“Miss Jones, if you wouldn’t mind staying a moment.” She nodded. He liked the way she had to crane her neck up to look at him from the low desk, eyes wide and lips slightly parted.

While Tom fielded some of the student’s questions _(When is the next paper due? Would this be an appropriate topic?),_ his eyes kept falling back to his new TA lingering around the room. She was wearing a neat little black shift dress over a crisp white button down and plain black ballet flats. Her clothing was fitted but loose; between that and the thick unruly hair that covered the majority of her chest and back, he really couldn’t guess what her body looked like underneath besides her bare slender legs. She was very short, he guessed she wasn’t over five foot three, but the espresso-colored waves added an inch or two.

If his student’s noticed his distractedness, they didn’t comment. One of the girls he was sure fancied him did deflate a bit at his disinterest.

It was five minutes before the last persistent student left the room and he could address the TA. “Rosario-Immacolata.” She turned to face him, and shifted her bag up her shoulder. “Spanish?”

She shook her head, a stray curl bounced against her cheek. “Italian. I go by Rosario.” She raised her hand to her hair and twirled that loose curl, tucking it behind her ear.

Tom nodded. He felt awfully warm suddenly and loosened his tie, pulling at his collar. “Rosario, then, I feel as though we may have gotten off on the wrong foot this morning.“ Tom saw her flush slightly as that. “I wanted to apologize for my behavior this morning. I was… under the weather, but that’s no excuse. I’m thrilled to be your new advisor.” Tom could see surprise and then something like suspicion flit through her almond eyes. She had absurdly long black eyelashes.

Tom hadn’t made a conscious decision to say what he said next, but the words tumbled out of his mouth before he could stop them, “Maybe we could get tea, if you’re free. There’s a nice pub not far….” Her eyes widened in surprise at his suggestion. _Shit. It sounds like you’re hitting on her. Backtrack, idiot._ “We could talk about your project and grading expectations for the class? I read your abstract earlier but didn’t have the time to reply. And there’s going to be a quiz on Wednesday and I was hoping to go over some of my grading standards.” Tom spoke very quickly, rambling in an attempt to save himself from sounding like a flirt. 

“I’m sorry, Professor, but I’ve plans for tonight already.” Tom was almost relieved; he was clearly in no state to be around this girl with her schoolgirl outfit and pouty mouth. “Perhaps we can meet another time?” She offered coolly.

“Yes, of course. You can stop by my office, I’ll be around for all of tomorrow afternoon,” Tom agreed.

“Brilliant, I’ll see you sometime then. I’ll try to bring questions.” Rosario pushed her bag up her shoulder again and headed to the door. Tom rushed to get there first, holding it open for her. “Thank you.”

Tom could smell her as she brushed by him. He gave her a smile and they went opposite ways. The second she was out of sight, Tom practically ran to the men’s room. He splashed some water on his face, his headache poking at his temple again. When he glanced at the mirror it was for the first time that day. He saw something on his neck at the edge of his loosened collar.

It was a hickey.


	3. The Opinions of Friends

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Graduate student Rosario Jones is smart, hardworking, and very strong-willed. She has just been assigned as a TA to a new professor- Professor Hiddleston is cold, aloof, and unbelievably attractive… and he knows it. Will the two be able to work together or continue to clash? Or will they overcome their differences perhaps a little too well?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is my first fic and all mistakes are my own. Feel free to comment or give any sort of criticism or feedback!

Rosario was tucked into a booth in her favourite sushi restaurant with one of her favourite people and was trying to forget her weird day.

“So,” Georgia asked, her blue eyes roaming over the menu, “who’d you end up with?”

“Hiddleston.”

That got Georgia to look up from the menu. “The dreamboat?” Sari nodded. “Is he as dreamy as people say?”

Georgia was an old friend from uni and Sari’s current flatmate. They had both managed to get into the same post-grad university but were in different programmes. Georgia did law while Sari was in classics. Because of this, they ran in vastly different circles and none of their faculty overlapped. Georgia still managed to know something about everyone though.

“He’s pretty hot,” Sari conceded- that was a flagrant and gross understatement. Tall, fair, and uniquely handsome, he could have been in films with looks and charisma like that.

Sari felt momentarily grateful that the charisma ended the moment he opened his rude mouth this morning. He certainly had the ego to match the film star looks. Otherwise, she might have been in some real trouble of a crush.

Georgia had turned her attentions back onto the menu.

“He’s also very rude though,” Sari said. “He was almost half an hour late to the Hamilton meeting this morning and I’m fairly certain he was hung over. And he had a hickey.”

Georgia’s attention was back. “A hickey? Isn’t he in his thirties? What sort of grown man gets hickies anymore?” She raised a knowing eyebrow at Rosario. “He’s does have a bit of a reputation with the women. But then again, it is uni.” Georgia shrugged easily. “Everyone’s slept with everyone. I imagine that’s doubly so for a hot tutor.”

Sari grinned- it felt good to talk to someone about him. “I know. He’s a strange man. He was completely rude this morning and then asked me to dinner after his class.”

This caused Georgia to put down her menu completely, worry lines creasing her otherwise smooth forehead. “What?”

"Yeah,” Rosario squirmed under her gaze. Hiddleston had asked in a professional context but something about the intense way he watched her had made her feel very…vulnerable. “He asked if I wanted to go to the pub with him to discuss my research and class stuff. It didn’t _seem_ flirtatious or anything but felt weird, I guess? I told him I’d just go to his office tomorrow instead.”

Georgia nodded her approval, “Good move. What a weirdo. Probably just used to hormonal undergraduates tossing their knickers at him. Mind you, I can totally see where those hormonal undergrads are coming from. I’d totally toss a hot prof my knickers too. Maybe he’s just too hot for his own good.”

“Probably.”

Georgia took on a playfully condescending tone. “Just try not to fuck him, Ro. It is _such_ a cliché.” Her blonde friend ended with a snarky grin.  

Sari rolled her eyes. _Now there’s a thought._

“I’ll only resort to that if my marks get too low,” she joked, taking a sip of her drink.

Georgia raised her eyebrows like she was considering it. “Well, you could do worse than Professor Hickleston.” 

Sari snorted loudly, spraying a few drops of water on the table. Georgia smirked as she watched her wipe it up.  Sari shook her head, “Hickleston… sometimes I don’t know where you come up with this shit.

Georgia tossed her blonde hair behind her shoulder and wiggled her eyebrows suggestively. “Natural genius, darling.”

“Of course, darling.”

Neither of them brought up Hiddleston again after that. A part of Sari- specifically a small, dark part of her- wanted to talk about him, to think about him. She hadn’t thought about sleeping with him until Georgia mentioned it.

Now she was having trouble getting the idea out of her head.

* * *

 

Tom had just slumped into his flat and began to make his tea alone when he heard a knock on the door. Tom stifled a groan: there were very few people who knew him who would drop by unannounced and at this moment, he very much wanted to be around no people.

He looked through his peephole and seeing a familiar face he opened the door.

“Tommy!” The man gave him a wide grin, holding him arms open. A case of cheap beer was perched between his hip and one arm.

"Hey Luke.” Tom stood aside to let him in. Luke Windsor was an old mate, thin with a youthful face.

“Hey mate, how’s it? Thought I’d swing by and see if you wanted to watch the footie. Brought the cheapest, worst beer I could find.”

“You know, that sounds great, mate. I was just making tea.”

“Brilliant. You look like shit.” Luke dropped the beers and plopped himself on a couch in Tom’s front room.

Tom chuckled. “I _feel_ like shit.”

“How did it go with Julia last night?” Luke cracked open a beer and began to surf through the telly channels.

 _Julia. That was the blonde’s name._ Tom had an unfortunate flashback to her anger this morning and Luke grinned at the dark look that crossed over his friend’s face. Tom sank into a seat across from him. “Why did you let me drink so much?”

His friend shrugged, before tossing him a can of beer. “You needed a night off. Just enjoy it, man, as I am sure you very much enjoyed Julia.”

Tom cracked the can open and took a deep, therapeutic drink. “I was late and looked like an ass in front of Hamilton today.”

Luke grinned again. “What did His Excellence Sir Dr Lord Hammy want?”

“He gave me Malkin’s TA.” Tom took an even longer dreg of beer.

Something in his face seemed to tip Luke off and Luke gave him a long, weird glance.

“What?”

His friend shrugged again. “I don’t know. You had a strange expression.”

Tom felt his face heat slightly. _Was he so obvious?_ “The TA is-“ he paused to take another sip of beer-“quite fit.”

Luke’s grin fell into a frown.

“Don’t look at me like that, mate. You asked.” Tom said defensively. He turned to look at the telly, and then realized he never finished making tea. He stood to go to the adjoining kitchen; he could feel Luke’s eyes follow him still. Tom bristled with irritation and continued, “I’m not going to try to pull her or something. She’s just… she’s cute. That’s all.”

“That better be all.” Luke was full-out frowning now. “I cannot emphasize enough how much that better be all. I cannot tell you how many of those cases I’ve seen. Always we think no one could possibly be so stupid, but every year there’s always one.” Luke worked in the administration of a different college at the university and dealt with deviant students and professors alike.

“You want tea?”

“I already ate, thanks.” Luke seemed determined not to be sidetracked and followed him into the kitchen. He stared at Tom and leaned against the kitchen island.

Tom stopped fiddling with the stove and glared right back. “I’m not going to do anything, so you can stop giving me that look. When have I ever indicated that I’d sleep with a student?”

Tom had never even come close to sleeping with a student; he’d definitely had the opportunity but never even considered taking advantage of it. Although some had been quite attractive, frankly he liked his job and didn’t see the point in jeopardizing it.

Luke sighed and looked somewhat shamefaced. “Fair point, mate. I know you’re not like that.”

Tom grinned and handed his friend another beer. “Besides, there’s really nothing more pathetic than trying to get off with a student.” He opened a second beer for himself as well. “They’re too easy. It’s like fish in a barrel.”

Luke laughed loudly at that. “Christ, you are such a wanker, Hiddleston. You know one of these days some bird will get you and you’ll be a miserable bastard like the rest of us.” Luke had been in a relationship for over a year and as far as Tom knew, was as far from miserable one could be.

“Let us hope that that day is far, far away,” Tom raised his can for a toast. Luke shook his head but clinked his can anyways, a smile on his face.

“You’ll have to settle down someday, mate.”

“Right, Mum.”

“No, seriously.” Luke was momentarily distracted by the sound of the footie coming back on in the other room. “It’s quite nice to be in a relationship.” Luke wandered to the other side of the room so he could see the television.

Tom continued to cook his dinner quietly. He’d been in plenty of relationships before and knew he had a tendency to lose himself in them. For that reason (and a hideous break-up too many), he’d been quite content to remain single for the past few years.

“I’ll date the TA for you then,” he joked to other room. Luke had resumed his spot on the sofa.

“Twat!”

Tom chuckled and took another sip of the cheap beer. It wasn’t so terrible.

 


	4. Crushing Crushes

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Graduate student Rosario Jones is smart, hardworking, and very strong-willed. She has just been assigned as a TA to a new professor- Professor Hiddleston is cold, aloof, and unbelievably attractive… and he knows it. Will the two be able to work together or continue to clash? Or will they overcome their differences perhaps a little too well?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is my first fic and all mistakes are mine! Any and all feedback or criticism is welcome!

It was just after four o’clock by the time Rosario wheeled herself into the classics building that housed Hiddleston’s office and lecture room. It had been a crisp late-September day, the clouds had continuously threatened rain but never spilled. She was dressed for the weather in a pair of tight black jeans and a loose grey sweater underneath a neat khaki trench coat.

She found herself surprisingly nervous about meeting him; Rosario had never been the type to get nervous around new people, even professors. Perhaps it was his bizarre invitation to dinner last night, or his mercurial mood swings, or his insanely good looks. All of these things made Rosario nervous. She thought, however, what made her nervous most of all was that she had no idea what to make of him. She wondered which Professor Hiddleston she would get today- the rude and disinterested advisor or the engaging and possibly flirtatious lecturer.

His door was open when she approached. She could see him at his desk, head bowed over a stack of papers in deep concentration. His short curls looked particularly touchable today. She knocked on the open door and he glanced up, the focused furrow of his brow smoothed out.

“Miss Jones, please come in.” His voice was smooth and warm and his gaze all too familiar.

_Engaging and flirtatious it is then._

“Hi, Professor.” Somehow his desk looked even messier than it had yesterday.

He gestured to the chair across from him, his eyes returning to his papers. Rosario shrugged her jacket off and sat down- she thought she felt his gaze on her as she took off her coat.

Hiddleston glanced at the watch on his wrist. Rosario thought it was a surprisingly dorky watch for such a stylish man- all of his clothes seemed meticulously tailored and body conscious. “I’m sorry but I rather expected you sooner. My hours end at four-thirty and I’ve got a lecture then.”

“Oh, I’m sorry. We can make this quick, if you need to.”

Hiddleston opened and closed his mouth like a goldfish and Sari felt herself blush for no obvious reason.

“Right. Well, I’ve been reviewing your abstract and the beginnings you’ve sent me. Everything seems to be in order.” He had woken up the laptop in front of him and ran a hand over his stubbled jawline as he glanced over the screen. “It didn’t seem like Dr Malkin was overly involved with your work. I have the feeling that you’re more of a hands-off advisee.” His blue eyes were almost too intense.

_With that face, I don’t think I want you to be hands-off._

She nodded, her mouth suddenly dry. “Yes, I suppose that’s fair. I tend to work more… individually.”

Hiddleston nodded. “Unfortunately, my temperament falls with the opposite. I tend to rely heavily on my TAs when I have them, particularly with grading. Of course, you’re only assisting with the one course but I do assign a lot of coursework- weekly quizzes, daily homework- and I do expect you to help grade and make yourself available to students. Of course, I’ll provide an answer key and any thing else you may need.”

Rosario nodded. _Well, that’s bloody great._

“You have my email, so feel free to ask questions. I check it many times a day so you don’t need to worry about sending it outside of business hours.” Hiddleston’s professionalism seemed to be running out of steam. “ I expect we will be spending a lot of time together. I usually like a standing weekly meeting to discuss research progress. Which times would work for you?”

“Er, would Wednesday after class be alright?” Rosario had a part-time job most mornings but her afternoons were always free. That was one of the reasons they paired her with Hiddleston- his lectures were all in the afternoon.

Hiddleston raised a brow and pulled out a worn leather day-planner. “Yes, that should be fine. We’ll say Wednesdays at five?”

“Brilliant,” Sari nodded. “Thanks.”

Hiddleston smiled at her; he had a lovely smile. His pink lips were very thin but Rosario wanted very much to know what they would feel like against her skin. She wanted it almost enough to distract her from the fact that he was her professor.

“You’re very welcome, Miss Jones.”

Rosario didn’t know if she should find the way he savored her name a good thing or a bad one.

She settled for a mix of both.

“Is that all, Professor?” She shifted to cross her leg over a knee and definitely caught him watching her movements this time. The way his eyes lingered on her hips made her squirm in her seat.

“Not quite. I’ve got something for you.”

_Is it in your pants?_

_Jesus Christ, what is wrong with me._

He reached into his desk and withdrew another small stack of papers. His pale forearm flexed as he deposited them in front of her. “Your first set of quizzes to be graded. The answer key is on top and you’ve until Friday to get them back to me.“

“Cheers.” Rosario couldn’t quite hide the sarcastic edge to her voice. Hiddleston laughed quietly. “It’s nothing too trying, I promise. I’m sure that

you will have them done in no time.”

Rosario smiled back sheepishly. She thought that she really ought to learn to watch her mouth one of these days.

“I ought to get going.” Rosario took the papers and carefully stowed them in her messenger bag.

Hiddleston nodded. They both stood at the same time. Even with the desk between them, he seemed to tower over her. Rosario tried very hard not to think about how tight his pants seemed in the crotch despite of the beautiful implication.

“Right, I’ll see you tomorrow Miss Jones?” Somehow he made the question sound like he was asking for a promise.

“Yes, sir.” Sari cringed internally when she heard how breathy her voice sounded.  

Very quickly, she saw a flash of something dark cross her professor’s face. It was quickly replaced by another warm smile.

There was a tension that seemed to crackle between them.

Rosario shifted in discomfort. _What was it about this man? How was he turning her into a puddle of awkward hormonal goo?_

“I’m, er, off then. Have a good night.”

“And you, Miss Jones.”

She could feel his eyes on her back as she walked away. 

* * *

 

Tom couldn’t get Rosario out of his head. He’d spent last night and this morning alternating between thinking about her and trying not to think about her.

He considered telling Luke but was sure he would only tear him a new one for even thinking about her.

Tom found himself wishing he had friends who were worse influences.

In all honesty, he knew it was just a crush; she had all of the allure of the unattainable, the forbidden fruit. Maybe that was the basis of the attraction; Tom had never been particularly masochistic but this little TA was changing that.

She was young, sexy, seemed to be quite intelligent- and her ever-present snarkiness felt like an indicator that she would be a firecracker in bed.

_That’s disgusting. She’s practically a decade younger than me._

Then Tom had peeked at her info on the uni directory and realized that at 23, she was more then a decade younger than him.

This coupled with the fact that he realized he was becoming obsessed with someone he’d only met at the beginning of this week, left Tom feeling like a defeated, dirty old man when he walked into the lecture room the next day.

Rosario was already there. Her thick hair was tied into a poufy ponytail high on the back of her head. During his lecture, he almost snorted aloud multiple times as he watched the increasingly enraged expression of the girl sitting behind her, constantly craning her neck to see around frizzy curls. If anybody noticed his growing grin during the lecture, their faces did not indicate it.

By the Rosario approached him after class had ended, he was fully smiling.

“Hi, Professor,” her slender hands reached down to tug on the hem of her skirt unconsciously. “I had a quick question about number five on the quizzes.”

Tom nodded, and she reached into her messenger bag to produce one.

“Could the genitive form be considered an acceptable answer for this? It is actually a little bit ambiguous…”

Tom answered her question and tried to keep his eyes off of her plump mouth.

As they spoke, he found himself surprisingly pleased at how genuinely interested she was in what he was saying. Even the eyes of the most dedicated of students tended to glaze over when talking about conjugation. Even Tom himself wasn’t crazy about the grammatical side of language- he had gone into Classics for the epic poems, and their beauty and power.

“Well, I hope that answers your question.” Tom rubbed his hands together briefly and leaned away from her.

“Yes it does, cheers.”

Tom regarded her a moment as she tucked the quizzes back into her bag.

“I also meant to tell you, I think that you should reconsider that hairstyle for class,” he said. “The g-“

“ _Excuse me?!”_ She interrupted him hotly. “I’m sorry, Professor, but do you _typically_ find it appropriate to comment on the appearance of your students?”

Now, Tom was a fully grown adult man but the furious expression on this barely over five foot woman sent a chill down his back.

He felt heat rush over his face and raised his hands. “I didn’t mean it like that-“

She cut him off again, “Is it because I’m a woman or because I’m part black?”

“Neither!” Tom exclaimed defensively. He took a deep breath in an attempt to collect himself. When he spoke again, his voice was cool once more, “It was because Miss Baker, who sits behind you, couldn’t see the entire lecture. If you had let me finish, I could have explained that.”

“Oh!” She replied angrily, before the meaning of his words sunk in. “Oh,” She repeated softly. A deep flush crossed her olive face. “I’m so sorry, I should have-“

Tom was the one to cut her off this time- he was so livid at her earlier implication that he couldn’t help himself. “It’s quite fine. I’m sorry as well. I would hate for you to think I was sexist or racist. Or both.” His voice was still very cold.

He saw a tiny flare of anger crossed her embarrassed face again. “Right. We are both very sorry.” She shifted her bag over her shoulder and turned towards the door.

Tom sighed. _So much for his consummate professionalism… This girl seemed determined to rid him of it completely._

“Miss Jones, I truly am sorry. I shouldn’t have phrased it like that. Or said it. It is inappropriate.”

She turned around sheepishly. “No, it’s alright. I’m sorry I was so quick to judge. That was really unfair of me,” she said quietly. Tom thought she didn’t apologize very often because of the way the words dragged hesitantly from her lips. “I’ll see you Friday. Sorry.” She scurried out the door.

Tom sighed again and ran a hand over his eyes.

Well, that’s one way to get over a crush, he thought.


	5. The Peace Offering

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Graduate student Rosario Jones is smart, hardworking, and very strong-willed. She has just been assigned as a TA to a new professor- Professor Hiddleston is cold, aloof, and unbelievably attractive… and he knows it. Will the two be able to work together or continue to clash? Or will they overcome their differences perhaps a little too well?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is my first fic and all mistakes are my own. Feel free to comment or give any sort of criticism or feedback!

Rosario woke up dreading lecture Friday morning. After the post-class disaster on Wednesday, she didn’t know how she could face him. Her Thursday had gone by smoothly and calmly- she had a shift at the bookstore, finished grading the quizzes, went to the pub with Georgia.

She was self-aware enough to feel slightly to very ashamed of herself for how she had snapped at Professor Hiddleston. She couldn’t even explain why her response to him had been so violent. Rosario would be lying if she didn’t think deep down that she was just reaching for a reason to hate her professor. She sort of _wanted_ to hate him. The unavoidable truth was that there was something there. He was _exactly_ her type- tall, smart, sort of an asshole.

_My god_ , she thought, _he’s hit the trifecta. I don’t stand a chance._

Rosario went about her morning routine and tried to forget the dashing professor with the intense gaze and deep voice and-

Her phone rang loudly, interrupting her thoughts. Only one person ever called this early.

“ _Buongiorno_ , Mama.”

“ _Ciao, bambina_.” Her mother’s Italian traveled thickly through the phone. Her mother usually spoke in Italian to her, especially once she’d moved back to Italy. When her father was alive, her mother had loved to use it to talk about him behind his back.

“How are you, Mama? How’s grandmother?”

“Ah,” Her mother sighed deeply. “She is okay. I am okay. My knee is acting up again but what can you do. I am waiting for your next visit, caro! Winter is too far away and _Firenze_ is so lovely in the autumn. When are you coming?”

Rosario figured a messy curl, the phone pressed tight to her ear. “I wish Mama but I have my programme. We’ll have a nice long visit for the holidays.”

“ _Sì, sì, sì_. I wish you could have gone to an Italian university. How’s your work coming?”

“Eh, _buono_. My professor and I… we don’t get along.”

Rosario’s mother seemed to pick up on her tone even through the phone, in the way only mothers could. “ _Ohibò bambina_ , what did you do?”

“Nothing! Well…I might have yelled at him a little.” Rosario admitted guiltily. “He made a comment about my hair!”

Her mum made an irritated noise through the phone. “Of course he did. Men are disgusting idiots. You stay away from them, yes?”

“ _Sì_ , Mama.”

“No boyfriends then?”

“ _Sì_ , Mama.”

“Ah, pity. I am not getting any younger and I want you married.”

Rosario rolled her eyes and stifled a laugh. _Talk about a mixed message._

“I’ve got to go, Mama. I’ve got a shift at the shop; I'll call later, yeah?"

“Okay, _bambina_. _Ciao!_ ”

" _Ciao. Ti amo!”_

_“Ti amo!”_

* 

The day had gone quickly- the more Rosario dreaded seeing him in lecture the faster time seemed to go by.

Rosario snuck into the class later feeling nervous and horrible about seeing Hiddleston. He seemed perfectly indifferent- he’d prowled into the classroom like a runway model, looking entirely too long and handsome to be just a teacher.

As class went by, Rosario tried to formulate a game plan for the inevitable confrontation. _All I have to do is drop off the quizzes. I just hand them to him- Here you go, Prof- and then I don’t have to deal with him for the whole weekend. I can do that, a quick five-second interaction and then-_

“Well, we are done for the day, class. Thank you for coming. Have a great weekend.” He shuffled his lecture notes and then turned to look at her expectantly. The students rushed out the door in the usual Friday stampede and Rosario was left alone with her professor.

Hiddleston broke the silence first. “How did you find the lecture?” He said stiffly.

“Fine,” Rosario shrugged. She checked her tone and backtracked. “Very well done. I’ve those quizzes you asked for.” She pulled them out of her bag and handed them to him; one of his long fingers brushed over her knuckles as he took them.

Rosario tried to ignore the thrill of the contact.

Hiddleston’s aloof expression hadn’t changed. Rosario straightened her shoulders. “Have a nice weekend, Professor.”

She was halfway to the door when Hiddleston spoke again, his voice rushed, “Do you have, er, anywhere you need to be right now, Miss Jones?”

When she turned back around, his expression was somewhere between hopeful and wary.

“I have something I’d quite like to show you." He continued as though that made his questions sound any less weird.

Despite all her own desires to leave, Rosario knew it would serve her well to keep on the good side of this man- although in those tight trousers she doubted that he even had a bad side.

She simply nodded.

His smile was a thing of beauty.

“Brilliant, do you have your Bod card on you by chance?”

 

* * *

 

The Bodleian Library was located in the very center of the city of Oxford. It was an exquisitely old building- the adjacent Radcliffe Camera stood like its majestic beacon. The Bod housed one of the largest reference collections in the world- it was legally allowed a copy of every book published in the UK and Ireland.

This is where Tom had wanted to take Rosario and, more specifically, a dark little room in its basement.

They walked down the cobbled street from their college and he had even checked the pace of his long legs so that she didn’t have to jog to keep up.

Tom had been a little offended by the obvious distrust on her face when he had asked her to come with it, but the potential of the surprise at the library was too much. He figured it was as great a peace offering he could manage.

And if this didn’t work, then they were both in for a painfully long and awkward year.

They went through the heavy wooden doors and stopped at the front desks.

One of the librarians looked up, and her expression changed from stern to happy. “Ah, Tom! How are you, dear?”

“Very well, Mrs. Edgars. Thanks for asking. We’re going down to the vault today.”

Mrs. Edgars smiled indulgently at him and glanced curiously at Rosario; Rosario hadn’t even attempted to hide her obvious confusion. She gave Tom a small slip of paper. “How wonderful. Have fun!”

Tom smiled at her and began to lead Rosario through the complicated path to the vault. They had gone down two staircases, five doors, and were walking down the second long hallway when he asked her, “Have you ever been down here before?”

“No, I haven’t.” Tom saw her shiver in the cool of the library basement. “What are we going to see?”

Tom smiled widely at her and shook his head. He wondered how she could look so pretty even under these fluorescent lights.

“It’ll be better for the surprise. And the build-up.”

At the very end of the hall there stood a door with a keypad. Tom punched the numbers from the slip of paper in and pushed the door open. It was ever cooler in the dark vault and Rosario shivered again beside him. The vault was full of sterile-looking metal and glass containers. There was the whir of a distant air conditioner and dehumidifier, and it was dimly lit.

“This is very…mysterious, Professor,” Rosario said softly and Tom chuckled. He took a moment to admire her wide eyes as she glanced around.

“It’s right here.” Tom stopped in front of a metal container. He lifted the lid up to reveal a glass cover. “It’s a part of the special collections but it’s usually loaned out to museums. I’ve had to do a lot of favors to be able to come down here with these manuscripts.”

“ _Holy shit_ ,” she breathed over his shoulder. Beneath the glass cover was a very old and very large book, opened to a brightly illustrated and ornate page. “Is that…Is that what I think it is?”

Tom let out a breathy chuckle, “Winchester Bible. Produced sometime in the twelfth century. Illuminated with gold and lapis lazuli from Afghanistan.”

The wonder on Rosario’s face was a sight Tom would cherish for a very long time. Her eyes travelled over the exposed pages intensely, like a lover looking at a nude partner for the first time.

“Wow. I don’t-“ her voice wavered. “It’s so beautiful.”

“One of the manuscript experts comes down every other day to turn a page, to help preserve the binding and not put too much stress in one place.”

He only just then noticed how closely they were standing- he could feel the heat of her through his clothes in the cold of the vaults.

“Yes,” Tom cleared his throat and raised a finger to the glass, “notice the Roman influence. Stunning, isn’t it? That’s why I thought, er, I thought you might enjoy it.”

Rosario’s Masters was on Latin in Medieval England.

“It’s incredible, Professor. Why did you….” She looked at him for the first time since he’d revealed the book. Her pupils were big and blown black. “Thank you.” The sincerity of her voice rang through.

Tom was suddenly grateful for the darkness as he felt a blush work across his face. “You’re welcome. I felt I owed you an apology.”

Rosario bit her plump lip at that and then opened her mouth to speak.

Tom rushed on. “No, I do think we got off on the wrong foot last Monday and never recovered. I had hoped this would be a peace offering. An excellent way to start a fresh semester.” He had tried to sound more like an authoritative professor than a hopeless, lovesick teenager but did not think he was very successful.

Rosario grinned at him. “If you apologize with treasures more than nine centuries old, Professor, then feel free the mess up whenever you bloody want. I won’t even be mad.”

Tom laughed a little too loudly; the noise echoed against the cool walls, trapping them in his laugh.

* 

They spent a few more minutes looking at the illuminated manuscript. And by that, Tom meant that Rosario had spent a few more minutes looking at it while he looked at her.

They excited the library together and went their separate ways. Rosario’s goodbye was so warm, Tom couldn’t help but beam at her until she walked away. As he walked back to his car, Tom felt lighter than he had in weeks.


	6. Takeaway or Takehome

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Graduate student Rosario Jones is smart, hardworking, and very strong-willed. She has just been assigned as a TA to a new professor- Professor Hiddleston is cold, aloof, and unbelievably attractive… and he knows it. Will the two be able to work together or continue to clash? Or will they overcome their differences perhaps a little too well?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello all- sorry for the delay in posting. Here's two chapters and I'll try to begin a regular posting schedule.

Tom was starving. He had had to forgo lunch for a series of faculty meetings and hadn’t been able to sneak away before his afternoon class. He could barely focus during his own lecture and couldn’t wait to get out of there, even though he knew he had a stack of papers waiting to be graded for him at home anyways.

For this reason, he had completely forgotten about the standing Wednesdays meeting with Rosario until she approached him after class. They had only established the meeting last week and this would be their first. And of course, it would be immediately after they had finally reconciled.

While Tom regularly would have been a little thrilled at spending time with Rosario, today he actually sort of resented it.

Rosario was looking very cute- all lovely curves swaddled in a soft jumper and a tiny skirt- when she tentatively approached his desk after lecture. She was clearly still feeling grateful for the Bodleian trip, something Tom could see in her warm smile.

“Shit,” he said softly. “It’s Wednesday, isn’t it?”

Rosario smirked slightly at him and nodded. “Forgotten had you?

“Yeah, sorry. It’s been a bit of an overwhelming day.” He sighed and put his hands on his hips, thinking for a moment. “Do you have to be anywhere right away? Would you mind terribly if we did a takeaway first?”

Rosario’s brows came together briefly and Tom could see her hesitation. It was like last week all over again. He felt himself deflate a little. _Why do I keep doing this to her? Where does all my propriety go the moment she walks in the room?_

Tom was incredibly surprised when she said, “Alright.”

“Brilliant.” Tom hesitated, nervously shoving his lecture papers into his briefcase. The other students had long left and they were the only ones in the classroom. “I can call in a Chinese? My treat.”

He tried to ignore the shifting of her thighs as she stepped from foot to foot. What it would be like to be between those thighs….

“Cheers,” she said.

 *

“You know, it’s a very good thing we’ve had this meeting,” Tom attempted to maneuver a noodle with his chopsticks and accidentally spilled some sauce on his lap. “I’ve a tonne of essays to grade and now you can help.”

“Oh yeah, brilliant.” Rosario said with mock enthusiasm and a small smile.

They were sitting at the small table in his office; Rosario was perched on the sofa against the wall and Tom in a wooden chair across from her. They had finished going over Rosario’s research progress- Tom found that she was just as efficient as he had initially thought, which left him with very little advising to actually do. This suited him perfectly well as he did have a lot of papers to mark.

The noodle Tom was holding joined the sauce on his trousers. He was immensely grateful that Rosario had chosen that moment to go inspect some of his belongings as he frantically mopped up his crotch.

“I didn’t know you went to Cambridge, Professor,” she called. Tom glanced up to see her looking at his framed degrees. “Isn’t it like treason that you’re at Oxford now?”

Tom laughed. “Something like it, yes.”

The rivalry between Oxford and Cambridge was so extensive and well developed that it had its own Wikipedia page. When he first applied for teaching positions, Tom had wished he could have stayed in Cambridge but the opportunity at Oxford was too good to pass up.

“I quite like Oxford now. The city, at least, is bigger, which is nice.” He told her, trying to rub at the stain in his trousers in an inconspicuous way. “I still cheer for Cambridge at sport though.”

Tom got the stain out of his trousers discreetly (he hoped). Rosario was now looking over the books on his shelves. She ran a slender brown finger across the spines of the books in a way that made a shiver run down Tom’s own spine.

“What are you looking for, Miss Jones?” He internally grimaced at how husky his voice had become. I should really try not to hit on my student sometime, he thought.

Rosario turned to look at him. “Nothing, just looking. Do you mind?” Her brow furrowed- Tom thought it had only just occurred to her that she should ask permission to go through his things. In a way, her ask-permission-later attitude just made him admire her all the more; it was something he had never quite mastered.

He grinned at her. “Not at all.”

Rosario reached the end of the shelf and grabbed a bottle of wine that served as a makeshift bookend in the corner.

“Oof,” she peered at the label, “this is a nice wine.”

Tom moved to stand beside her and took the bottle. “I forgot I had this. I think it was a faculty gift.”

Rosario laughed. Her eyes shifted up to him. “It could be very telling about you that you keep your alcohol on the same shelf as your dusty old books, Professor.”

"Eh he he, that it could,” Tom said. He twisted the bottle over. “You’re quite right though, this is a very nice wine. Way too nice to be gathering dust.” He set the bottle down on his desk and pulled a pocketknife out of the top drawer. “There are some glasses in the faculty room, if you’ll go grab some. We can have a drink before starting these essays.”

Once again, Tom saw the smallest hesitation flutter over Rosario’s pretty face before she grinned and nodded.

“Great, I’ll be right back.”

“Good.” Tom pulled the corkscrew out and stuck it in the cork. He begun to twist and work the stopper out. “You’ll probably want the drink. I’m a bit… finicky about essays and these are not very good.”

The cork popped out and he heard Rosario’s laughter float away as she went out the door.

 

* * *

 

 

The second Rosario heard the office door shut behind her, she let out a deep breath. The sight of Professor Hiddleston uncorking that bottle was doing things to her. He had had his shirtsleeves rolled up and the way his pale forearms flexed as he eased the cork out of the tight bottle was heating her in a way her peppery beef dish hadn’t.

As she made her way down the hall to the faculty lounge, she checked her mobile. For a brief moment she considered texting Georgia. _What would I even tell her? Hey, I’m in my advisor’s office and he’s looking quite fit? Any advice on not thinking about shagging professors?_ She snorted; knowing Georgia, her advice would be to shag him. Hiddleston was, after all, the sex god of the department.

Rosario wondered when her life had become the preamble to a bad porno film- the innocent student and handsome professor sharing wine and then bodily fluids.

_Gross._

She quickly found the glasses in a cupboard and headed back to Hiddleston’s office.

Well, she thought, at least he wasn’t a complete sex god. It had been pretty funny watching him try to handle chopsticks. Even funnier when he spilled all over his lap. Rosario had to walk away to contain her laughter when she realized that he dropped a noodle on his noodle. Hopefully, his was bigger.

She was still smiling at the thought when she walked back into his office. Hiddleston grinned in return, a large smile that reached all the way up to his bright eyes.

“Found the glasses alright?”

“Yes, sir.” She held them out and tried to ignore the goose flesh prickling along her arms when his hands touched hers.

He poured the wine out in two smooth motions. “Rosario, you know you don’t need to call me ‘sir’, yeah? You’re not my student or anything.” Hiddleston looked straight into her eyes- his gaze was too intense for his words but Sari couldn’t read his tone. She watched him give himself a little shake and cough slightly. “I mean, er, we’re to spend a lot of time together and I’d hoped we’d be more like colleagues.”        

He handed her the wine and she took it, debating her next words. She could hardly tell him that her insistence on calling him ‘professor’ or ‘sir’ had more to do with reminding herself that he was _not_ her peer or her equal… and not a viable option.

She had been on first-name terms with Dr. Malkin, and acted more like colleagues just as Hiddleston insisted, but couldn’t bring herself to do it with him.

“Yes, I know.” She said slowly. “Force of habit, I suppose.”

He smiled again, far too warm on his far too handsome face.

“Cheers.”

He raised his glass and she clinked it.

“Cheers.”

 *

After that, they sat down and began to grade. Rosario found that Hiddleston had been right- she certainly did need the drink to get through the essays. They joked about each essay getting a higher mark as they got more and more drunk and exasperated until they fell into a companionable silence.


	7. Stains

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Graduate student Rosario Jones is smart, hardworking, and very strong-willed. She has just been assigned as a TA to a new professor- Professor Hiddleston is cold, aloof, and unbelievably attractive… and he knows it. Will the two be able to work together or continue to clash? Or will they overcome their differences perhaps a little too well?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is my first fic and all mistakes are my own. Feel free to comment or give any sort of criticism or feedback!  
> I'm going to try to get into a regular posting schedule- at least once a week.

They had been grading papers for a while when Professor Hiddleston stood to stretch. Rosario tried to keep her eyes on her paper and not on his long, sleek body.

“Do you want some more wine?” He asked, extending the bottle out to her as he refreshed his own glass.

Sari nodded. She was starting to feel its effects but in a good way; it was certainly helping these awful Latin essays go down. He handed her the glass and took the spot next to her on the tiny sofa. He draped one arm around her side of the sofa comfortably.

“Why did you choose medieval ecclesiastical Latin?” He asked softly. Rosario furrowed her brow and he continued quickly, “It’s not exactly a… _vivacious_ subject.”

“Well,” she shifted deeper into his arm, “I’ve always loved history and language, even grammar, if you can believe it. Especially grammar. With a name like Immaculate bloody Rosary it’s hard _not_ to have at least some fascination with the church.”

Hiddleston’s laughter shook the wine in her glass they were sitting so close. “It’s not even a proper phrase!” Sari was laughing too now. “Immaculate Rosary. I guess it’s only slightly better than Immaculate Conception. I don’t mind Rosario too much.”

Hiddleston took another sip of wine when his laughter died down. Sari liked how delicate the wineglass looked in his big hands.

“Why did you choose classics?” She asked, surprised to find herself genuinely curious.

Hiddleston was swirling the wine around his glass and smiled gently. “I liked the stories, the heroes. The language has always been the more tedious part to me, the opposite of you, I suppose.” Rosario nodded.

“And how did you end up Immaculate?” He asked with a cheeky grin. Sari shot him a cross look, which only made his smile wider.

“Before my Italian grandfather died, he asked my mother to call me that. It’s like he thought, 'what name could tell the world how much I hate my granddaughter and how bloody Catholic I am at the same time?!'” He spluttered a bit of his wine at that.

Between coughs, Hiddleston said, “It’s not that bad.” He smiled at Sari’s disbelieving look. “Alright, it’s pretty fucking bad. It could be worse.”

Sari turned against his arm so she could face him. Their legs were touching now. “Do you want to hear the worst part?” She kept her voice low and conspiratorial. They were so close on the sofa that she could see the red wine stains on his thin lips. He nodded, his eyes wide. “My mother told me if I was a boy, he asked that I be called-“ She paused for dramatic effect- “Paul.”

They both burst into laughter, Sari tried to keep her wine from spilling as they shook the sofa. “Rosario-Immacolata and _Paul_. Paul! Not Paolo, Paul. It’s not even fucking Italian!”

“Oh, that is cruel.” Hiddleston wiped a small tear from the corner of his eye. Maybe it was the drink, but his cheeks were a warm pink from the laughter and the wine and Sari thought that he had never looker handsomer. Sari felt a bit of a flush on her own face as well and hoped that she didn’t look sweaty.

She gave him a playful nudge. “Hiddleston doesn’t exactly roll of the tongue either.”

He gave her an affectionate smile. She noticed that sometime in their laughing fit, his warm hand had slipped onto her shoulder. “Ah, that it doesn’t. At least my parents had to decency to give me an easy Christian name.” He gave her shoulder a slight squeeze. “Mind you, I meant it when I said it could be worse. I’ve a professor mate called Cumberbatch. _Benedict_ Cumberbatch.” Sari made an exaggerated cringe and they both laughed.        

“Fair point. It could always be worse.” They both took sips of their wines and fell into a companionable silence. Sari surprised herself with the realization that this was the happiest she’d felt in ages. _I must be drunk_.

He had begun to absentmindedly rub her back and she relaxed into it. He smelled like wine and some lovely masculine scent of his own.

“So,” Hiddleston’s brow crinkled a little, “your mother is Italian?”

Sari nodded, her glass was down to the dregs. “My father’s English. Well, half English. _His_ father was Ethiopian but he was born and raised here. He met my mum in uni and she came here. Dad died when I was ten and she moved back to Italy once I started uni.” She drained the rest of her wine. His hand felt lovely massaging her back.

“I’m sorry. My parents divorced but they both still live in England, so at least I have them near. That’s part of the reason I like being at Oxford, I’m closer to my mum now. It must be hard with your mum so far away.” Tom had finished his wine too, and took her glass from her to set on the table. He didn’t take his hand from her back.

Sari shrugged. “I’ll probably move to Italy someday. We talk on the phone constantly. For now though, it’s England for me.”

Hiddleston nodded. “There’s really no other place like it. Not for me, anyways.”

Free of her wine glass, Rosario didn’t know what to do with her hands anymore. She watched his free hand absentmindedly run up and down his thigh.

Suddenly, she became very conscious of how close they were. It was a quick crackling change in the air. Their legs so close to being intertwined, his large hand exploring her back.

She tried to shift away slightly, subtly, but his free hand reached out and grabbed hers. Sari looked at their hands together; his pale one dwarfed her olive one. Maybe if she didn’t look at his face this moment would pass.

“Rosario.”

She raised her eyes to his. _Damn it_.

He had on a soft smile that crinkled around his eyes a little. _God, he really was good looking._ His eyes dropped to her lips and she felt his hand slide up her shoulder to the back of her neck and begin to press her forward, into him. His fingers were warm as he cupped her bare neck. His lips were still stained red from the wine.  She was sure hers were too.

_This is too much._

 She pulled away slowly, but forcefully. She needed to get out now. And just like that, the crackling spell was broken.

“It’s late.” It was embarrassing how much her voice shook. “I should really get going. I’ve got…” She faltered for an excuse, but her professor nodded quickly, letting her go.

“Right, right.” He agreed, not looking at her. They both stood and he began to rummage with the debris of their wine.

“I’ll see you tomorrow. Bye.”

He didn’t reply as she rushed out of his office. The cool air of the street felt as welcome as rain in spring on her hot face. As she made her way to the bus stop, she realized just how close they had come to…. She didn’t even know. As she sat on the bus, the only thought in her head was _my god, what have I gotten myself into_.

 

* * *

 

The second the door shut, Tom wanted to go after her. They had been _so close_. He ran his hands through his hair in frustration and palmed his slightly stiffened cock

through his trousers. After looking at empty wine bottle and glasses a moment, he picked them up and took them out in the hall.  He threw the bottle in a nearby recycling bin where it landed with a satisfying clunk. He kept the wine glasses and brought them to the sink in the faculty lounge.

Rinsing the wine glasses was proving therapeutic. As the water and soap chased away the stains on the first glass, he felt like maybe he could wash his stains away as well. He knew what he was doing, or more accurately what he had tried to do, was wrong. He shouldn’t be trying to fondle girls a decade younger than him. He shouldn’t be trying to get close to a student who depended on him for her degree. Even though she was of age- and then some- and technically not his student, morally, he knew he shouldn’t pursue her. There were plenty of other girls for him to chase. Hell, there were plenty of other girls who chased _him_.    

But oh, the way she had looked tonight. Her stories. The way her face lit up as she told him about her work and her family. Tom had had fun talking to her. Tom had a lot of fun with women, but usually it wasn’t talking to them. She was funny and bright and her skin had had that rosy glow. The center of her lush mouth had turned grape-purple.

 _No._ He couldn’t do this. He finished meticulously drying a wine glass and turned to the next one. It wasn’t right of him to do this to her. But more than that, Tom felt just how utterly unfair the whole thing was. It had been a long time since he had felt this attracted to someone, body and mind. Perhaps it was karma for the blonde he had kicked out of bed the day he met Rosario, he mused. That would be poetic.

Just before he stuck the second glass under the water, he noticed something he hadn’t seen before. On the rim of the glass was the imprint of a perfect, lipsticked lip. For some reason, the sight went straight to Tom’s cock. He imagined that lipstick print somewhere else, somewhere on him. In despite of himself, Tom brought the glass to his own mouth and lightly pressed his lips to where hers had been in a one-sided kiss.

 _God, he was so far gone it’s pathetic._ Tom gave himself a slight shake and proceeded to wash the glass, scrubbing carefully to get the red off.

* 

That night when he went to bed, he dreamt of her red kisses.


	8. Morning Mutual

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Quick little smutty sort of chapter. Comments and criticism appreciated!

Rosario woke up too warm and poorly rested. She was cocooned in her fluffy white duvet and soft white sheets- both of which were entirely too comfortable if too warm. Sunlight filtered in softly though the window. Rosario sat up, drank some water from the glass on her nightstand and checked her clock.

She had plenty of time so she settled back into bed, the reason for her restless night returning to her. _I can’t believe I almost kissed my professor._

To be fair, he was the one to attempt to kiss her. She had been the one to pull away, no matter how her body had protested.

She wondered what would have happened if she had kissed him. Would she be waking up in his bed now? She wondered what his bed looked like; she was sure his sheets would be clean and soft. As Sari snuggled into her own bed, she imagined having him beside her, his long legs wrapped in hers. She’d probably wake up too hot there too, with his hand between her legs.

Sari felt a slight shiver. She imagined her professor pressed against her back, legs entwined with hers, those long slender fingers gently glossing between her thighs. He’d be good with his fingers. Sari sighed and stretched, enjoyed the way the cotton of her sheets rubbed against her bare skin- she almost always slept nude. She imagined his weight pressing into her, skin instead sheet.

Sari ran her finger to her nipple, imagining her professor’s mouth there. In her fantasy, he’d pull his fingers from her pussy and flip her onto her back. He’d run his wet fingers over her hard nipple and take the other one into his hot mouth, sucking gently, lapping her with his tongue.

Her fingers ventured lower now. She’d gasp when his teeth would scrape across her nipple. She’d feel him smile against her skin at that. Then she’d feel the smile move down, trailing wet kisses between her breasts, in the divots of her ribs, down her abdomen until he was _there_. The roughness of his morning beard would make her delicate flesh even more sensitive. Then his tongue would find her clit.

Sari moaned aloud. Her fingers circled her clitoris quickly, spreading the wetness gathering below. Professor Hiddleston would lick up her pussy slowly, circling around her clitoris and moving back down in a torturous pattern. She knew he’d be good at this, those thin pink lips of his.

He’d move that hot wet mouth back up to her own and when they finally kissed, when she was ready, he’d push his thick hard cock into her. He’d move slowly at first, lazily, limbs tangled in the sheets on a weekday morning lazy.  As he’d pushed himself in and out, hitting the dark sensitive spots inside of her, Rosario felt herself getting close to the finish. He’d move faster now, the grip of his hands on her hips almost painful. Faster and faster, until she’d-

Sari came just as her alarm went off.

* * *

Tom woke up exhausted. He violently pushed the button on his bleeping alarm clock and flopped back onto his bed, arm across his eyes.

 _I tried to kiss her. I tried to kiss her and failed._ Tom pulled the arm off his face and stared up at the ceiling a moment. _I’m such an idiot._

Tom threw the covers off and skulked to the shower, hoping the warm water might make him feel a little more human. He pulled his crinkled tee shirt off and his boxer briefs down his legs, leaving both items on the bathroom floor. He turned the shower on and stepped in. He kept the water scalding.

Tom shampooed his hair and reached for the bottle of body wash. He lathered it into a cotton washcloth and began to gently scrub his chest. He tried to concentrate on the hot water soothing the muscles of his back but his mind kept returning to her. How the hell was he meant to face her in class? _Best case scenario_ , he thought, _all she thinks is that I had too much wine and it was an innocent, drunken mistake. Worst case scenario, she thinks I’m a predatory lech who preys on schoolgirls._

Tom very much hoped it would be the former.

To be fair to himself, Rosario is hardly a schoolgirl. At twenty-three, he supposed she was a woman, fully grown. Her work was also not that of a child- he knew that with a few more years she’d probably surpass even him.

She did wear those little schoolgirl outfits, however. Tom shivered under the hot water at the memory of her little skirts and the black knee-highs she’d worn last week. They had suited her. Almost too much, Tom would have to admit. He wondered how she could look so damn good. A rush of heat went down him that had nothing to do with the water of the shower. Unbidden, an image of Rosario in a tiny school uniform shot into his mind; skirt so short it showed the curve of her ass into thigh, shirt half unbuttoned, the edge of a black bra peeking out.

Almost unconsciously, Tom’s hand moved down to his half-hard cock and slowly began to stroke. He imagined her bending over in front of him; he pretended he could see the outline of her sweet cunt through the fabric of her panties. Tom’s hand moved faster, stroking up from the base and rolling his thumb over the tip. She’d sit on his lap, facing away, and roll her hips over his. In his mind, he’d bring his hands around to yank her breast out of her bra cups. He could almost hear the breathy gasp that would turn into a moan when he pushed her panties to the side and plunged into her. He imagined feeling her tight wetness on his cock, bouncing up and down. Tom leaned against the tiled wall of his shower, his hand moving faster yet under the droplets of water. God, he wanted to hear her moan his name- that breathy, scratchy little _“Professor!”_ of hers. He was panting himself now. He was imagining taking her hips in his hands and watching her ass dance as he thrust into her when he came.

The water and air felt too hot and humid for him now, as he watched the streams of his cum circle around the drain. He laid his head on the arm that propped him up against the shower wall. He knew that this would be a moment he remembered, the moment he realized he was so far gone he would never make it back.

           


	9. Dramatics

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello! This is only proofread by me and I kind of rushed through this one, so any and all mistakes are mine. Criticism and comments are appreciated :)

It was, Rosario thought, a very good thing that lecture was only three days a week. She was desperately thankful for the Tuesdays, Thursdays, and weekends off.

In despite of an attempted kiss and the resultant masturbation session, (both things she was trying desperately to keep from her mind,) Rosario was actually feeling pretty good about Professor Hiddleston. She saw him Friday during lecture and everything seemed normal. Rosario thought that repression got a bad rap; neither mentioned it and both seemed to have reverted to their usual friendly relationship.

She chalked up the attempted kiss to mutual attraction and alcohol, a combination that had led to the downfall of impractical couples for an eternity.

After walking out of the Classics building, Rosario went straight home. She felt she deserved a long, Hiddleston-free weekend in bed, only breaking for biscuits.

She had barely reached her goal, flopping most unceremoniously onto her bed, when Georgia barged into her room.

“You’re in bed, already? Certainly setting a tone for the weekend, aren’t you?”

Rosario didn’t even bother look at her. “Hello, Georgia,” she grunted.

Her friend went to investigate her closet, picking through the pieces.

“I’ve got us tickets to a play tonight.”

Sari flipped over onto her stomach and groaned loudly into a pillow. “Oh, fuck off.”

Georgia’s voice was getting prissier now. “Come on, all you do is work and no play! Get out, do something different. Take some risks! Live your life!” Rosario felt her weight on the other side of the bed. “Ever since you switched to Hiddleston, you’re hardly around or you’re working. You’re wasting your youth!”

The wasting of youth speech had been a popular one during Rosario and Georgia’s uni years. Sari was horribly familiar with it.

“That reason hasn’t worked since I turned twenty-one, Gee. Give it up. I’m tired.”

A sharp whap to her ass forced a yelp from her.

“You can sleep when you’re dead,” was Georgia’s tart reply.

Rosario flipped over to glare at her friend.

“Come on, it’s at the Oxford Playhouse. You love the Playhouse.” Georgia cooed in a sing-song voice, “And if I have to go, you do too.” She scooted closer to Sari on the bed. “Ro,” she drew out the nickname imploringly. _Here comes the guilt-trip._ “I hardly ever see you anymore. I wanna have a girl’s night. Just the two of us again.”

Rosario arched a brow. “So you want to catch up by going to a place where we can’t talk to each other?”

Georgia smiled widely. “Precisely. Get up.”

Rosario sat up drudgingly and friend went back to her closet. “Why do you really want to go? You hate theatre.” Georgia did hate theatre- the bars surrounding it had always been more her scene.

She turned back to face Rosario, her face serious for once. “But _you_ like it. I meant what…” Georgia sighed. She sat down on the edge of the bed. “You’ve seemed off the last few weeks. Distracted.” There was nothing but concern in those blue eyes.

Rosario knew exactly where the roots of that distraction lay. Suddenly everything- Wednesday night with the wine, the way he looked at her in class, the sexual tension, how gorgeous he looked when he thought no one was looking- bubbled up at her lips. All those feelings she’d been trying to bury down deep inside threatened to overflow.

Instead she bit her tongue.

“I know, Gee. I’ve just been stressed.” It wasn’t wholly a lie.

Georgia smiled. “A play will cheer you right up then.” She was back to playful again.

“What play is it?”

“Some comedy-parody thing. If it’s shit, we’ll go to the pub. Deal?”

Rosario grinned. “If it’s good, we’ll still end up at the pub.”

Georgia shrugged. “Fair enough.”

 

*

 

The play, a modern parody interpretation of _Romeo and Juliet_ , was indeed shit. This had become apparent in less than ten minutes, so Rosario only half paid attention. The drama unfurling inside her own head was much more interesting than the events on stage.

The guilt was starting to sink into her. _God, I should have told Georgia everything._ She had never kept a secret from her friend before, at least, not one like this.

She honestly didn’t even know why she didn’t tell her. She had no reason not to: nothing had happened yet. Rosario chastised herself for even adding the _yet._

_Nothing has happened yet and nothing ever will happen. It’s just a schoolgirl crush._

If it was just a schoolgirl crush, then why hadn’t she told Georgia?

Rosario felt sick.

If she was being truly honest with herself, sitting there in the dark theatre in the nosebleed seats, the reason she didn’t want to tell Georgia was the same reasoning behind all of her interactions with Hiddleston: if she didn’t acknowledge it, then it wasn’t real. Talking about it would mean admitting that there was something there between her and her professor. And admitting something was there, well, that was just putting her foot in the door.

The lights went on and the actors left the stage for intermission. Rosario thought that if the theatre burned down, it would be kinder than sitting through the rest of this tosh.

Georgia leaned over to mutter, “We are going to need to get pissed to get through the second half.”

“Not possible. You forget it’s about twelve quid a drink in the theatre bar.”

Georgia groaned loudly as they made their way up the aisle to the lobby.

“Here’s a thought,” she said brightly, “I need the loo and since I bought the tickets, you can go stand in line and buy our drinks.”

Rosario laughed sarcastically. “Cheers, there’s an idea.”

Georgia gave her one of those quelling looks she was so good at.

“Fine,” Rosario sighed. “Rosé?”

Her friend beamed. “You’re the best!” She scampered off, her blonde hair quickly disappearing into the throng of theatregoers.

Rosario weaseled her way up to the very crowded bar. It seemed everyone in the audience had had the same sudden desperation for a drink.

Rosario had just ordered the wines and was wondering if theatres purposefully put on terrible plays in a scam to sell more drinks when a soft hand touched her lower back and a horribly familiar voice asked, “It’s quite shit, isn’t it?”

  

* * *

 

 

Tom had been looking forward to a weekend of distractions. He needed this weekend and he needed to clear his head of his alluring TA

So naturally the very first thing he did on this Rosario-free weekend was run into her.

She was looking very pretty. Tom had taken a long moment just to observe her standing at the bar. She was wearing a dress, rather tighter and more revealing than anything she had ever worn to lecture; Tom was almost jealous of the fact the dress got to hug her plump ass and he didn’t.

Without the classroom setting, she might have been any other woman, a woman Tom could have approached and flirted with.

Alas, she was not; Tom approached her regardless.

“It’s quite shit, isn’t it?” He had to lean in close for her to hear him over the din of the bar; his hand automatically went to the small of her back without his conscious permission.

The expression on her face when she turned around was hard to place. Tom couldn’t tell if it was resignation or embarrassment. Tom couldn’t tell which one would be worse.

“Yes, it really is,” she agreed. “I can’t believe more people haven’t left.”

“I can’t believe I haven’t left.” 

That comment earned him a smile. “Me too.”

The bartender put down two drinks in front of her and she paid him quickly. Tom felt a strange queasy feeling in his stomach looking at the two glasses. _What if she was here on a date?_ Tom didn’t know if he could handle it.

“Are those both for you?” He joked in a would-be casual tone. The joke and his artifice both failed miserably judging by the slight creasing of her brow.

“No,” She took a delicate sip of wine and the sight went straight to Tom’s groin. “My friend Georgia dragged me here. Trust me, I would not be here of my own volition.”

 Tom laughed; it was shameful how much relief he felt hearing that. “I am in a similar situation myself. I’m wondering at what point it becomes acceptable for me to ditch my mate.”

In his wild imagination, Tom thought of escaping with Rosario: _let’s get out of here together,_ he’d say and take her by the hand and run out the door.

Rosario didn’t say anything. She took a longer drink of wine this time. It was red, just like the other night when he tried to-

 She caught his eye over the top of the glass. The silence turned pregnant; Tom was sure she was thinking of it too. A blush worked across her dark face.

Tom opened his mouth to speak. Truthfully, he didn’t know what he wanted to say, if he wanted to apologize or at least acknowledge it.

He didn’t get a chance to say anything.

“Is this my rosé, Ro?” A cute blonde girl, tall and slender, bounced up to them and took the other glass from Rosario without waiting for a reply.

“Oh yeah. And it was twelve quid. Am I good or what?”

“You’re the very best.” The blonde clinked her glass against Rosario’s. Her eyes turned to Tom. “Who’s your friend?” There was no attempt to try to hide the curiosity in her voice.

Rosario coughed awkwardly.

_She’s definitely embarrassed._

“Er, this is my advisor, Dr Hiddleston. Professor, this is my flat mate, Georgia Langdon.”

“Nice to meet you,” Tom stuck out his hand to shake. “So you’re the one who inflicted this play on Miss Jones, are you?”

This Georgia laughed easily. “Well, _Miss Jones_ was already in bed at five pm so it’s not like she had anything else to do.”

Rosario flushed red at her friend’s words. “Yes, well,” she said curtly, “we ought to be getting back to our seats-“

“Tom! There you are. I thought you were getting a drink?” Ben appeared at Tom’s shoulder. Like Rosario’s friend, he didn’t even try to disguise the curiosity on his face as he surveyed Tom’s company.

Tom wondered if it was really so strange that he might have an acquaintance ( _or girlfriend_ , his brain added,) Rosario’s age. Sure, some might find the age difference creepy.

Based on his expression, Ben might be one of those.

“This is my TA, Rosario Jones. This is the one of the directors of the Oxford University Dramatics Society, Benedict Cumberbatch.”

Rosario caught his eye at this, a small smirk on her face, and Tom immediately knew that she was thinking of the laugh they’d had at the expense of his mate’s name.

Tom liked the feeling of having a private joke with her. It made him feel like they had a more intimate connection.

“Nice to meet you, I think we ought to be getting back to our seats.” Rosario said quickly, shaking his hand. Georgia followed her friend’s lead. “It was _nice_ seeing you, Professor.” Her face screwed up on the word _nice_ like it wasn’t quite the word she wanted.

With that, she pulled her friend into the crowd and Tom lost her.

Tom also knew that he had lost his chance already at a weekend not spent thinking of her.

 

 


	10. The Storm

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A double update because I am feeling generous. And because I am really excited about this chapter. As usual, any mistakes are mine, comments and criticism appreciated.

 It was an uncharacteristically warm day for October in England, with a full bright sun and a clear blue sky. The students of Oxford had taken full advantage of it. The campuses of the colleges and the streets of the city were crawling with students trying to soak up the rare sunshine. Tom didn’t teach a class that Thursday but he did keep office hours. There was a small window in his office that he kept open through the day, enjoying the breeze as it fluttered over his papers and books. Tom went about this Thursday as usual, meeting with various students and other professors, and trying to get the dark girl with the pouty lips out of his head.

After the incredibly awkward run-in with Rosario at the theatre Friday, he had done his best not to think about her. Their Wednesday meeting had been boring, especially compared to the one last week where they’d gotten drunk and he’d tried to kiss her. Yesterday they had simply sat in his office and talked about her research while Tom wondered if the tension in the room was one-sided. They certainly got on well- they shared a sense of humour and passion. However, aside from the awkwardness and the embarrassment of last week, she seemed, more or less, completely unaffected by him.

It was just after five by the time he’d just walked out of the building door to head home, and dark clouds had moved overhead. Tom turned around to go grab the emergency umbrella in his office. As a native Englishman, Tom was immune to weather and always prepared for its mercurial changes. By the time he was back in his office, the dark sky had opened up and the downpour had begun. Tom closed his little window and headed out again.

He had just walked out the door, for the second time, and was opening his battered umbrella when he collided with wet figure, leaving a large wet mark on his white shirt.

“I’m so sorry!” A familiar voice rang out. “Oh, Professor Hiddleston!”

Tom hurriedly shut his umbrella and pulled Rosario through the door, trying to get out of the torrential rain. “It’s alright, Miss Jones. I should have been looking. I-“ As he said that, he did look at her and the sight was enough to trap his voice in his throat.

Rosario was wearing a blue sundress that was soaked to the skin. The fabric clung to every curve of her body. Tom could see the outline of her full breasts and the peaks of her nipples through the wet cotton, her waterlogged curls plastered against the glistening skin of her chest. Tom forced himself to pull his eyes away from her body to her face and felt the lump in his throat move further down into his chest. Surrounded by plush glossy lashes, he watched a gathering heat in her eyes as she stared back at him- watching him watch her.

Before Tom could even consider stopping himself, he reached out for her. One hand wrapped around her waist- he could feel her hipbones through the thin cotton- and the other curled around the back of her neck as Tom finally, _finally_ pressed his lips to hers.

Her wet body was stiff in his arms but only for a moment. As his lips moved against hers, her arms went around him as well. She buried one small hand in his hair to pull him even tighter against herself. Tom felt the front of his clothing chill as the rainwater seeped from her clothes to his. Her skin and dress were cold from the wet, but her mouth was hot against his.

Tom opened his own to taste her, sliding his tongue into her mouth. He felt a sharp exhalation at this, her hands tightening on his body. This kiss was heat and desire. Rosario’s tongue had joined his, and Tom greedily took this encouragement. He pressed her into a wall and let his hand slip from her waist to her damp breast. His fingers brushed lightly against her hard nipple and she gasped again, pulling away from his mouth to breathe.

Tom met her eyes, their breaths mingling in the slight space between them. They both were panting loudly. The rise and fall of her breasts directed Tom’s attention lower and he planted a kiss in the crook of her neck.

He could feel her quick pulse fluttering against his lips.

Tom suddenly felt chill air hit the wet of his front as she pushed him away. His hips were still pressed hard into hers but there was now space between their chests and mouths.

“We can’t-“ Rosario took a shuttering breath. Tom felt his heart sink and loosened his grip. “We can’t do this _here_.”

Tom almost stumbled when he finally understood her words. With a fierceness that surprised even him, Tom forced his mouth against hers again, enjoying the surprised gasp against his lips. He picked her up so her feet dangling towards the ground and, never taking his mouth from hers, began to swiftly carry her away from the exit.

Tom only released her, lips and body, to force open the nearest door. Once he’d slammed it shut, he pressed her against it, pinning her down with his hips. Rosario was the one to kiss him this time, running her free hands up and down his chest. Tom gave a shuddering sigh himself into her mouth and tore his mouth away to kiss down her neck again. He crouched down to run his hand from her ankle to her thigh, grasping her bare leg and wrapping it around him. The gasp she made as his erection met her core made him smile into the kisses he placed against her neck.

With her breasts heaving against him, Rosario rolled her hips against his. Both sensations were so delicious Tom felt like all the oxygen had rushed from his brain. He buried his face in the crook of her neck a moment, trying to regain control.

Rosario’s small hands fluttered up his chest again, wrapping around his face and pulling it back down to hers. As they kissed, Tom ran his hands down to her bum, squeezing and lifting. Rosario heard his unspoken message and wrapped her other leg around him. Tom carried her over to the long table that sat at the front of the room and perched her down upon it.

He tore his lips from hers and took a moment just to look at her. He had a sudden desire to try to commit this moment to memory, to remember just how she was right then. She looked up at him from the edge of the table, her mouth was full and flushed, her hair a mess from fingers and rain, her skirt forced up her parted thighs as he stood between them.   

Tom ran his hands up her smooth legs before dropping to his knees. He used his hands to spread her open and holding her in place, he began to plant kisses on the soft skin of her inner thighs. He worked his way up, kissing back and forth, until he reached her hot center. Rosario had lain back on the table, her legs fully spread. She shuddered violently when he stopped kissing to blow a cool breath through her wet panties. Tom moved his hands up her thighs to top of her knickers and pulled them down; he wrestled a bit to get them over her still-shoed feet and threw them over his shoulder carelessly. Rosario sat back up when he did that; he vaguely saw her open her mouth to speak from the corner of his eyes when he buried his face between her legs. Her resulting moan encouraged his tongue and the raging erection between his own legs. He lapped up and down her pussy before circling the small nub at the top with his tongue. Her wetness spread as he moved his mouth.

She tasted like heat and rainwater.

Tom’s cock was raging painfully against his strained zipper but he was so overjoyed at being able to finally taste her, he ignored it. He felt her fingers wind through his hair as she pressed him closer. She moaned his name loudly as he stopped licking to suck lightly on her clitoris. Tom moved his hand up to pull down the front of her dress and bra, he rolled her nipples between her fingers without ever removing his face from between her legs.

It wasn’t long before he felt her inner walls begin to shudder. She was hotter and slicker than ever and when he gave her clit one last suck and pinched her nipple, he felt her begin to spasm against his mouth.

As she recovered, he kissed up her stomach, pulling her dress over her head. He took another moment to savor the way she looked- a dazed expression on her face, the way her nearly nude body rose and fell. He reached around her, purposely pressing his covered cock into her still sensitive sex, to unhook her bra. She lay fully nude below him on the table and Tom felt his heart in his throat.

In his pause, Rosario surprised him by sitting up suddenly. She took his hand and pressed a kiss against his palm. Then, almost torturously slowly, she drew one of her fingers into her hot mouth. Her bright brown eyes bore into his as she slowly sucked.

It was the single sexiest thing he had ever seen- a precursor to what he was just about to do to her. Rosario’s tongue had been swirling around the finger inside her mouth when she suddenly bit him.

The bite stirred Tom out of the trance he had been in watching her. He had to be inside her immediately. Tom pulled his finger out of her mouth and grabbed the side of her face roughly. With his other hand, he unzipped his trousers and pulled his cock out. He pushed her down against the table, his fully dressed body pressing into hers, and ran his cock along her slick entrance once, twice, and then plunged into her.

The ecstasy of finally being inside of her was almost too much to bear. Tom forced his tongue in her mouth to silence his cry and tried not to immediately come. She was hot and wet and tight, so tight, tighter than anything he’d ever-

Rosario had grabbed his tie and yanked, forcing him further into her. Tom’s already labored breathing intensified. He pulled his lips from hers and pushed himself up on his forearms to look at her. He began to move faster, to really pound into her. He watched the pleasured expressions move across her face and her breasts bounce as he fucked her, the table shaking below them. He could feel her growing close again and forced two fingers into her open mouth. She moaned through them and Tom shifted again, taking his other hand and placing it on her throat. He didn’t squeeze. Rosario opened her eyes to look at him, the dark heat of them pushed Tom even closer to the finish. He drove his cock into her harder yet, and, gently, tightened his hold on her throat.

That threw her over the edge. As he felt her tighten around his cock and her hot eyes roll back and her moan against his fingers, he let himself go with a low cry, “Rosario!”

Cum burst from his cock and coated her walls; the orgasm was so intense Tom’s vision went momentarily black.

Tom collapsed on top of her, hardly noticing the discomfort of his damp clothing in between them. They both lay like that for a few moments, rising chest to rising chest, until their bodies had stilled completely,

Tom slowly, achingly, pulled out of her, enjoying the slight twinge that crossed her face when he did. It was only in that moment did he finally realized that the room they were in was the same one as their classroom.


	11. A Request and a Command

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is edited only by me, so there may be mistakes. Comments and criticism would be greatly appreciated. I hope you like it!

Rosario was half a block from Professor Hiddleston’s house and walking slowly. She supposed she could call him ‘Tom’ now.

After they had fucked in the lecture room, _Tom_ requested that she’d come round to his that later that night. Then he’d carefully dressed her; it was only as he slowly helped her into her damp and crinkled sundress and retrieved her panties that she noticed that he still had all of his clothing on.

She didn’t know how she felt about that. There’s was something very vulnerable about nudity and the fact that their... coupling had been so one-sided left her feeling off-balanced and unsure.

There was another part of her that steamed with eroticism at the idea.

After dressing her, he’d placed his own worn, thin tweed jacket around her and sent her on his way. They hadn’t kissed. To be honest, Rosario had been in such a daze of shock and post-coital bliss that she barely registered what he’d been doing and saying. When she got back to her own flat, she did register how thoroughly fucked she looked. Her dark skin was practically visible through the damp cotton of her dress. Although the men’s jacket didn’t help, it did partially mask the creased sundress and wild hair, both of which screamed of what had just happened.

That jacket was currently draped over Rosario’s arm as she dithered nearer his flat. She had half-considered not going. She didn’t know why he had invited her over. Was he expecting a repeat of the events of this afternoon? Was he going to try to convince her to forget it ever happened?

Rosario gave herself a little shake and was marching the remaining steps to Hiddleston’s flat when the door opened and her professor ushered her in. They didn’t speak as they walked to his own door. The silence hung heavy and still between them.

Professor Hiddleston, _Tom_ , looked particularly handsome this evening. He was dressed down- he’d forgone the usual crisp suit for a pair of dark jeans and a grey jumper.

Once they were inside, he finally spoke. “I thought you might not come.” His voice was a velvety rumble that made Sari’s insides quiver.

“I thought I might not, too.” She admitted. His eyes were far too focused on her for her to relax. “I’ve brought your jacket. Thank you for lending me it.” She handed it to him.

“No trouble at all. I couldn’t have you leaving looking like that.” His piercing eyes looked almost predatory.

Rosario emitted a nervous laugh; it sounded hideously between a squeal and a giggle. She looked around his living room in an attempt to hide from those piercing blue eyes. “No, I suppose not, Professor.”

She then felt him press himself against her from behind, his hands covering her hips possessively. Rosario felt heat gather between her legs as she realized that he was already hard.

“I don’t think it is entirely necessary for you to continue to call me ‘Professor’. I think we are rather beyond that, darling.” Tom murmured in her ear, his breath was cool and light on her skin but his voice was dark and low. “You may, however,” his mouth moved further down her throat and the hands on her hips pulled her tighter against him, “continue to do so, if you please.”

Rosario’s breath hitched in her throat and Tom took the opportunity to run his hand up her taut stomach to cup her breast. A low moan reverberated against her neck.

Rosario’s brain was falling into the same lusty-haze it had before in the lecture room. She tried to gain control of herself. “Why am I here, Tom?” She tried to sound unaffected but her voice cracked when Tom pinched her nipple through her shirt.   

Tom’s other hand joined his first- working together to massage her breasts. He slowly dragged his lips to her ear again and when he spoke, his voice was unbearably smooth: “Because you want to be.”

It was simple statement but it struck Rosario dumb.

Tom spun her around and at the surprise on her face, grinned almost victoriously. The grin didn’t vanish when he pressed his mouth to hers. His large hands slipped down to cup her ass, digging into her flesh with his fingers.

Rosario responded immediately to the kiss. She wove her fingers into her hair, holding his head down close to hers. He was too tall to kiss comfortably; she had to stand on her toes to reach.

Tom pulled away but his eyes stayed on her lips. “Bedroom,” he panted, “I want you in the bedroom.”

She nodded and let him pull her by the hand down the hall. She had never seen his bedroom before and there was something terribly intimate about it. The room looked like him. It was painted a dark blue. The bed in the center had sky blue sheets under a neat grey comforter and a large bookshelf dominated most of one wall.

Apparently, Tom had waited for too long as she did her inspection; his impatient hands started running over her. Her jeans were unbuttoned before she even noticed him doing so.

“Wait.” Rosario didn’t want to let him take her again like he had that afternoon. She wanted to see him and touch him in the ways their one-sided fuck hadn’t allowed her.

Rosario put her hand on his chest and pushed him back until the backs of his knees hit the bed and he was forced to sit. They were almost equal heights in this position. His eyes bore into hers but he made no move to take charge again, instead placing his hands lightly on his thighs. She ran her hands down his chest and pulled off that grey sweater. His head got stuck for a moment as she wrestled to get it off, and they were both chuckling by the time she chucked it on the floor. Rosario finally smoothed her hand over his chest, playing with the sparse hairs there; she enjoyed the contrast of her hand against his skin, like tea when the milk has just been poured in.

Her hand descended further; Tom’s breathing was getting heavier, she could see his knuckles whiten as dug his fingers into his thighs. She quickly rubbed his hard cock through his trousers and then went to unzip them. Once she had unzipped them, purposefully dragging her fingers down his length, she stepped back abruptly. Tom’s nostrils flared in frustration but he made no move further. His eyes were piercing into her. Rosario tried to ignore how her hands shook slightly- a mix of arousal and nerves- as she pulled off her own shirt. She kept her eyes on his face but his gaze roved over her body. As she removed each piece of clothing, he grew more and more focused. By the time she had rolled down her jeans and stepped out of them, she could hardly stand the intensity and the scrutiny of his stare. She stood still one more moment; completely bare in front of him- she was testing her own patience as well as his.

She finally moved forward and returned her hands to the edge of his trousers. He shifted his hips up to let her pull them off, dragging his pants down his long legs as well. She had to fall to her knees in front of him to get them off of his legs. When he was finally bare in front of her, Rosario realized that this was the first time she’d actually seen his cock despite having had it inside of her a few hours previous. He had felt big inside of her- in a way that just barely toyed the line between pleasure and plain- but it was another experience altogether to see just how large he was. It looked like him- long and pale and thick and perfect.

Apparently Rosario’s foreplay took too long for Tom’s liking- he sat forward and wrapped his hand around the back of her head and brought her towards his erection. His cock bobbed lightly against her lips for a moment before she took him in. She relished the sharp inhale he made as she began to swirl her tongue around his head. The hand on the back of her head encouraged her movements. She raised her hands; one went to gently cup his balls and the other to work his long shaft.

She had only been sucking for a moment when his hands moved to her upper arms and pulled her off and up so she was standing.

“I’m not going to last long if you keep doing that,” he said roughly. The arousal was thick in his voice and Rosario grew even wetter. She placed a hand on his chest to push him further back on the bed so that she could climb on top of him and straddle his hips.

With Tom flat on his back, she rocked her hips over him, making him slick with her own desire, and before she slowly, slowly took his length in. His cock hit every single delicious spot inside of her and she rode him, deep and slow. One hand on her hip helped guide her and his thumb pressed at the junction of their flesh rubbed her pleasure from her.

She rode him for only a few moments- enjoying the way his cock felt, the look on his face as he hissed her name, and the way he pulled her closer so he could suck on her sensitive nipples- when he pulled her off and tossed her face down on the mattress. His strength startled her but the sheets stifled her thrilled moan as he entered her from behind. The depth of his cock sliding in and out of her in this position was almost too much to bear, hitting every single sweet spot inside of her. His balls slapped against her clitoris in beat to his almost violent strokes.

The pleasure, quivering and raw, was so overwhelming that she almost didn’t notice his breathless mutterings- each punctuated with a thrust.

“Oh god….I’ve wanted… _so long.”_

He was rougher this way, rougher even than he had been that afternoon. The hands on hips were gripping her so tightly that there would be bruises later. Somehow, the pain only made her feel that much better.

Finally, she heard him groan and burst inside her. The pulsing release drove her over the edge and she came too, clawing at the sheets the same way he clawed at her hips and mewling his name as sparks flew behind her eyes and between her legs. 

He pulled out and collapsed beside her, one hand chaotically thrown across her ass. The now empty sensation was almost painful to her over stimulated sex.

After their breathing had evened out, Tom spoke, “Stay the night, darling.”

It wasn’t a request.

Rosario didn’t think she could ever refuse anything that voice asked for. She nodded wordlessly, too exhausted to move even if she wanted to.  

She felt his hand move up to gently stroke her back and was quickly lost to a deep and dreamless sleep.


	12. Morning Glory

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is my first fic. Any and all mistakes are mine- comments and criticism are appreciated!

Tom woke up in an inexplicably good mood. He couldn’t remember why he felt so good until he was reminded by the shift of soft leg against his. He turned on his side to look at Rosario, propping himself up on one arm.

Tom didn’t think he could ever grow tired of looking at her. She was lying on her back with her arms above her head; one leg had been carelessly intertwined with his. Her full breasts were uncovered by the sheets; Tom loved the color of her nipples- somewhere between brown and rose.  The skin of her breasts looked soft and dark against his sheets. Tom noticed small moles dotted across her skin.

Tom extended a hand to trace up her ribs, gliding along the curve of her breast. Her eyes remained shut but he felt her slight shudder.            

Tom brought his hand to play with the soft strands of her hair instead. He didn’t want to wake her. She looked so peaceful with her brow unfurrowed and her pillowy lips slightly parted. Her long inky eyelashes stretched across her cheeks.

She looked like she was meant to be in his bed.

Tom sighed happily and lay back down, keeping his head turned to continue watching her. The sex had been incredible. Tom was surprised at how good it was, especially considering that they had only slept together twice. Usually it took a lot more accustoming to his partner for Tom to have sex that great. Their chemistry was explosive- it had been all he could do to keep his hands off her since she became his TA.

He thought about that first time in Hamilton’s office. How pretty and irritated she had looked in her little collared dress. If she was pretty then, she was damn beautiful now, the irritated expression lost to sleep. It sort of surprised Tom how attractive he found her when she was angry. It was almost as attractive as he found her right now, naked and in his bed.

Fighting the urge to roll on top of her and fuck her into those soft sheets, Tom slowly pulled himself out of bed when the need to use the toilet and take a shower grew to be too much. He was careful not to disturb her and placed his duvet back over her exposed chest.

As he showered, Tom thought about how much he enjoyed waking up to Rosario in his bed. He couldn’t remember the last time that he’d felt like that. He wasn’t entirely sure why he insisted that she stay the night but he was glad he did.

The water felt incredibly soothing on his skin. He should have woken her up so that they could shower together.

As he absentmindedly shampooed his hair, Tom realized that he’d been grinning to himself the whole time. _Was this Rosario’s doing?_ Tom had already suspected that his feelings for Rosario ran far deeper than he had anticipated. He had to admit that what he felt for her was more than sexual attraction; no, this was something else. Something _more_. Tom shook his head to himself at that thought, the smile still on his face.  _It would be lovely to have Rosario as a girlfriend. To be able to come home to her, to go out with her…._ He knew there’d never be a dull moment with her around. Tom didn’t regret becoming her TA- it was what had led to their introduction- but he wished there was some way to get out of it now. To have the chance to be more than a professor to her without breaking any rules.

Rules be damned.  

Tom stepped out of the shower and began to towel off. He fancied a fry-up- it had been a long time since he’d cooked one. And it had been an even longer time yet that he’d had someone to cook for. He had a vision of bringing Rosario breakfast in bed- she’d sit up with a sleepy smile and they would eat and then they would fuck; Tom resolved to do exactly that.

He crept down the hall and tried to open the door to the bedroom as quietly as he could. He had already snuck over to the dresser and near silently pulled out a fresh pair of pants and a tee shirt, when he turned around and realized the bed was empty.

Tom yanked the clothing on quickly and went out to the living room and kitchen. There was no sign of her there either.

Tom lost his appetite.

 

* * *

 

 _Oh my bloody god, oh my bloody god._ That phrase was the only thing running through Rosario’s head once she’d woken up and remembered exactly where she was and exactly what she had done.

She heard running water and shot out of the bed, dressing as quickly as she could. Hopefully she could be out of there by the time he was done. She yanked her jeans up her thighs and shoved her bra into her messenger bag. She took one more moment to check her hair and makeup in the camera of her phone to make sure she looked at least somewhat acceptable, and then she bolted.

She didn’t feel proud of herself as she snuck out the front door but she imagined she’d have felt a lot worse had she to actually face him. Rosario felt too antsy to wait for a bus and decided to walk home instead.

She felt like she had woken up from a dream. The events of yesterday and last night seemed like a surreal, erotic blur. What on earth could she bloody have been thinking? _I didn’t even have the safe sex talk with him before hand. What has happened to me?_ Rosario was a staunch believer in talking about sex before having it- she’d been on the pill for ages but if the man she wanted to sleep with couldn’t handle a birth control or consent discussion then he was clearly not the type she wanted to have sex with.

 _Jesus Christ, I haven’t even shaved in at least a week._ Tom clearly hadn’t minded, not the way he had so enthusiastically buried his face between her thighs.

She felt slightly queasy. How could he have so much power over her?

She couldn’t even say she knew what had come over her. Sure, she had always found him attractive, incredibly attractive even. And the sexual tension between them had always been unbearable, but she had never once considered that she would actually sleep with him. It had always been a fantasy: a lovely way to spend a few passing moments, particularly when he wore those tight white shirts of his and tried to kiss her on sofas, but never a serious option.

As Rosario walked down the road to her own flat she considered the possibility that she was possessed. Demonic possession would certainly explain a lot.

She was already beginning to regret running out on him. It had been a split decision but she suspected it was the right one. If she had stayed, they would have fucked. She knew that for a fact. If they fucked they would never stop fucking. This, she also knew for a fact.

No, it was better to nip this in the bud while she could. She wondered if it was already too late to nip that bud. The bud may have already bloomed. That bud might have bloomed the very moment he stuck his face between her legs. That bud might already have been an entire bloody field of flowers by the time he’d finally slid inside her.

 _Jesus Christ, I am utterly, utterly fucked,_ she thought, fully appreciating the irony of that sentiment. Fucking was exactly what had gotten her fucked.

She wondered how she was ever going to be able to look him in the face knowing what his cock tasted like. And that it tasted _good._

She opened the door to her flat as quietly as she could. Georgia was a notoriously deep sleeper and while Rosario doubted that she’d even noticed she’d been gone, she didn’t want to risk it.

After slumping into her bedroom and collapsing on her own familiar white duvet, she stared straight at the ceiling. She really fucked this one up. She probably should have left a note.

What would it even have said? _Thanks for the incredible shag, let’s pretend this never happened?_ What would he have done if she’d stuck around?

Probably kicked her out, she mused. They could hardly begin a sexual relationship while she was his student. She doubted he’d want more than that anyways. He was, after all, the playboy of the department even if he was old enough to be her… well, not her father. A young uncle, perhaps? Or a really hot older cousin? Stepfather had her mum been a cougar?

With these thoughts barreling around her head, Rosario decided to try to take a nap before her shift at the bookstore.

What she would have given for this to not be a lecture day.

* 

Rosario entered the lecture room her usual ten minutes early and tried to pretend that less than twelve hours ago she hadn’t been fucked over the table at its front by the professor. She took her usual seat and prayed that there would be a fire alarm or some sort of natural disaster. _And that the cleaning staff was efficient._

Alas, there was none and Tom prowled into the room exactly on the hour, looking tall and handsome as ever.

He seemed perfectly calm and normal but his eyes didn’t sweep her way once. Sari hadn’t noticed until that moment just how often he _did_ look at her while speaking. Every (appalling) joke he made, his eyes would move to her to gauge her reaction; every quote, every idea, he was always looking at her.

 _This does not bode well_. Tom paused to loosen his tie and Rosario suddenly recalled his hand reaching out to grasp her throat. To her absolute embarrassment, she could feel herself growing aroused at the memory.

She turned her head to look out the window: anything to distract from the professor, the table, and the memories pooling between her thighs.

Lecture dragged on for an unbearably long amount of time. By the time it finally ended, Sari had had her bags packed for five minutes. She intended to run out as soon as she humanly could.

Before she could make her grand escape, Tom dismissed the class and said just loud enough for everyone to hear, “Miss Jones, my office if you have a minute.” He didn’t look at her as he said it.

_No, I don’t have a minute. I don’t have a bloody minute because I am going to die of embarrassment now._

“Yes, sir.”

He nodded tightly and the pair made their way to his office in silence.


	13. An End

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is my first fic and any and all mistakes are mine. Comments and criticism would be amazing!

Neither of them spoke until after Tom’s office door was firmly shut.

In fact, neither of them spoke for a solid few minutes after that as well.

They didn’t sit down either. Standing awkwardly in the center of the office, each was too afraid to make the first move- metaphorically and figuratively.

Rosario was wearing her hair differently, he had noticed. It was up in a haphazard bun, tendrils falling carelessly around her face. She usually left it down- especially after his disastrous remark about her hair all those weeks ago. She looked somewhat older like this: more elegant and less tempestuous.

_Why, why did she always have to look so lovely._

Tom sighed and finally broke the silence.

“Why did you run out this morning? You could have at least left a note.”

He was slightly gratified by the obvious guilt that ran across her face. Rosario began to anxiously pace; Tom almost sadistically enjoyed watching her, _she was always so confident_ , seem unsure.

“Yeah, I know. I just… I couldn’t deal.”

He tried to ignore the hurt at those words. _Had it really been so bad?_

Callousness seemed his best option. “We fucked, Rosario. That’s it. I don’t know what there possibly could be to deal with.”

Her eyes narrowed infinitesimally. It felt like she could see straight through him and his facade. “Don’t be bitter, Tom. It doesn’t suit you.”

“Of course not, darling. Not when you’ve mastered it so.”

Rosario suddenly stopped her aggravated busy movements. With her back to him, Tom watched her set her shoulders. “Tom, we can’t… we can’t keep on like this.”

Rosario was a force of nature and this was said with the inescapably destructive determination of a volcano.

Tom suddenly decided he was brave enough to face it. He took a few steps forward and with a confidence that surprised him, wrapped himself around her from behind. Her muscles were tense against his chest, but she leaned her head back and snuggled into him.

“We can’t do this, Tom. We both know better.” Rosario didn’t move away but Tom imagined that he could feel her slipping through his grasp. “What happened last night and everything throughout this whole bloody semester... it can’t happen again.”

Tom buried his face in the crook of her neck and tightened his arms around her. He didn’t mean to sound petulant, but his voice was whiny when he asked, “Why?”

Rosario sighed and the rise and fall of her chest momentarily pushed her closer into Tom. “It’s not right, we could both get into trouble-“

“Oh fuck the trouble and morality bullshit, Rosario. We’d be fine.” Tom interrupted. He was so frustrated with the excuses and the buildup and the tension. It had been weeks and weeks of growing closer and closer until they had finally collided, the explosion they _both_ wanted, and now she wanted to pull away again as though they hadn’t already been blown to pieces. “You know we would. We’d get a slap on the wrist and that’s it- and that’s only if we got caught! Our sexual relationship wouldn’t _break_ any rules-“

At that, Rosario forced her way from Tom’s arms and he let them fall in surprise. When she turned to face him, she looked angrier than he had ever seen her. Which, he thought, was really saying something.

"It’s not the rules I’m worried about. Or our bloody _sexual relationship._ You really just don’t get it, do you?” She sneered, raising a cruel brow. “You have no bloody idea.”

“What is it, then?” Tom threw his hands in the air. “What is it that I am so _obviously_ missing Rosario? Please, condescend so much as to enlighten me.” The sarcasm dripped like venom off of his words.

“Because you’re right! It’d be fine and there’d be a slap on the wrist _for you_! Not for me! Do you know what the girl gets? You get a pat on the back for screwing the dumb student but I get completely discredited!” Tom’s jaw dropped open at that. Rosario began to pace again, running a hand through her wild hair and messing it out of its style.  

“ _All_ of my work will be discredited. Everyone will think that I didn’t earn it or that I didn’t do it. That you only validated my research in order to fuck me.”

Tom opened his mouth to interject but Rosario pressed on, an accusing finger pointed at his face. “It’s fucking true. It’s fucking true and you know it. We’d both break the rules but only I’d get the consequences. No one will take my research or me seriously. The poor, dumb slag who couldn’t finish her programme without opening her legs in exchange for help. “ Rosario’s cheeks were red with anger.

“But that’s not true, Rosario,” Tom tried to argue. “Your work is impeccable. Your paper will speak for itself…” He trailed off when he realized how unconvincing that sounded, even to him.

Some of the fire went from her eyes and she turned away. When she spoke, Tom was struck by how sad and small her voice sounded. “Don’t be naïve, Tom. It doesn’t suit you.”

As much as Tom didn’t want to even consider it, her words had echoed true. He hadn’t even thought about the consequences for her. He knew what people were like, how they would think. There were always rumors but if it came out that they were sleeping together…

He didn’t want to admit it, even to himself, but if it had been another professor and student, he would have doubted that student’s work too.

“I can’t risk it, Tom. As much as I’d”- Sari’s voice cracked in a way that cracked Tom’s heart as well-“as much as I’d like to. I can’t throw it all away. Not for this.”

Tom’s stomach and heart and soul sunk. He felt like he was shrinking down into the smallest form he could be under a tremendous pressure. _Not for this_.

He didn’t trust himself to speak but the words tumbled out anyways, in a voice that came from his mouth but wasn’t his. “I understand. I can’t ask you to do that.”

Rosario’s face turned towards his. He thought maybe her eyes were too shiny but she gave him a soft smile. “Thank you, Tom. I appreciate it.”

He tried to smile back but he was fairly certain it came out more like a grimace. His next words still came out in that foreign voice. “Perhaps we should just pretend that it never happened”.

He tried to ignore the sting he felt at the visible relief that passed over her pretty face.

“I think that would be best, yes.” She agreed. The leftover flush from her anger reminded him of the night he first tried to kiss her, drinking wine in this office.

Tom felt sick.

Rosario pressed on hesitantly, “I think that we should try to avoid, um, maybe intimate occasions as well. No more excessive alone time or personal conversation. We can keep this professional.” She almost sounded like she was trying to convince herself as well as him.

Tom nodded.

“I think that you should get going. I’ve got to finish this work.” Tom gestured around to nothing; he couldn’t bring himself to look at her and was desperate for her to leave. “I’ll see you Monday.”

Tom sensed her nod and she moved towards the door. He heard it open and then, “I’ll see you Monday, Professor.”

Tom waited until he heard the door shut to look up. He slumped down to the floor, his eyes to the ceiling.

He was back to ‘Professor’. Somehow that hurt more than anything else she had said.


	14. A Confession

“Alright mate, what gives?”

“Huh?” Tom shouted breathlessly, chasing after the fleeing tennis ball.

He and Luke had taken advantage of a clear, cool day to play some tennis in one of the spare courts of the uni athletics buildings. Tom had jumped at the chance to get out of his flat and away from his thoughts- just the sight of his bed filled him with the weirdest mixture of sadness and arousal- but hadn’t found it very effective.

Luke walked over to the net separating them, hanging off of it lightly to catch his breath.

“You’re usually terrible at tennis but I’ve never beaten you this easily. Where’s your head, mate?”

Tom shrugged, tossing the retrieved ball up and down in his hand. “It’s nothing.”    

“It’s not nothing. ‘Nothing’ has been quite obviously bothering you for the past few days.” Luke seemed unwilling to drop the subject, his racket balanced on his hip.

Tom tucked the ball under his arm and ran his free hand through his hair. Tom desperately wanted someone to talk to but he also desperately wanted to pretend the whole affair had never happened. Somehow he thought that if he never admitted to it, it would help him pretend that it hadn’t happened.

Then he thought of seeing her in class tomorrow on Monday.  

“I slept with my TA!” He exclaimed, his voice louder than necessary. He was so nervous and flustered he couldn’t control his volume. The admission felt good but he couldn’t bring himself to meet his friend’s eyes and settled for bouncing the ball against the ground with his racket. Tom was so completely ashamed and guilty and depressed and just fucking _horny._ He couldn’t get the experience out of his head.

“Well….” Luke sounded completely dumbfounded. “Shit.”

"Yeah,” Tom agreed, keeping his eyes trained on the ground. “Shit.”

“When….” Luke was trying and failing- very valiantly, Tom thought- to assume a normal tone. “When did this happen?”

Tom finally raised his eyes to look at his friend. He hoped he didn’t look as childishly sheepish as he felt.  His confession had made him feel as guilty as much as relieved. “Thursday.”

“Thursday. Right.” He could almost see the thoughts running through his friend’s head. Luke was making an admirable effort to not seem judgmental or freaked out.

“Just say it, Luke. You’ll feel better.”

Luke played dumb but his fingers tightened on the net. “I don’t, I don’t have anything to sa-“

“Yes, you do. Tell me how bloody stupid this was and how I’ll be in so much trouble if the admins find out and how my career will be over.”

Luke gave him a shrewd look and shook his head.  He walked over to the benches their bags lay on and began to put things away.

“Let’s go get a pint.”

“It’s not even noon.”

Luke smiled tightly, “Yeah, but we both could fucking use it.”

 

Once they had gotten in the closest pub and had their beers in front of them, Luke finally asked, “How could you let this happen? Shit. I mean,” Luke shook his head, “ _how_ did this happen? Where did…all of this come from? I know you said she was fit but I thought that was, like, a _joke._ You haven’t mentioned anything since then.,,,”

“I know. To be honest, I’ve been sitting on these feelings for a while.” Tom took a long, deep sip of beer. The alcohol helped loosen his tongue. “With Rosario… I don’t know. She’s different. I’ve wanted her since the moment Hamilton first introduced her. Not just in a physical way, I don’t think- she’s funny and smart and so… just. And Thursday… I don’t know … I just couldn’t help it anymore and I couldn’t fight it anymore. I know it’s fucked up. And I know I really fucked it up. She’s my student and young, so young- it’s fucked up that I even want her. What’s fucking wrong with me that I would even- it’s not that I don’t like women my own age. I feel like a creep half the time but the other….” He could feel himself begin to ramble and decided to take another therapeutic chug.

“Do you have feelings for her?” Luke was trying very hard to keep his tone light and Tom appreciated it. “Like, romantic feelings? Or has it just been…sexual?” Luke couldn’t hide his discomfort on that last word.

“I didn’t _think_ I did. Thursday changed things though. Waking up with her… it was nice. Really nice. Finally getting what I had wanted and dreamed of for months only made me realize how much more I actually want. And when she-“ Tom’s voice quavered pitifully and, embarrassed, he took another mollifying drink.

Luke took a rather deep sip of beer as well and then prompted, “And when she…?”

Tom sighed. “She chucked me.”

“You mean-“

“Yeah, she told me it was a mistake and that we should have never done it and could we just pretend that it never happened.” Tom knew he shouldn’t feel embarrassed but he did. It wasn’t just his feelings that she had hurt but his pride as well. Logically he knew she was right to do it but emotionally he just felt burned.

“Well at least one of you has half a brain,” Luke said. Tom shot him a miserable look and Luke winced slightly. “Sorry, I shouldn’t have said that. It’s true, mind you, but I shouldn’t have said it.”

Tom conceded with a defeated shrug. “Yeah, it is.”

Luke grimaced and asked quickly, “It’s not because you can’t have her, right?”

Tom replied with a confused face and he elaborated, “Look Tom, you’ve not had a hard time pulling women in quite a while. I don’t think I can even remember the last time someone turned you down. You don’t think you want her so much because she’s hard to get, do you? A challenge for a change?”

Tom was surprised by the thought- it hadn’t occurred to him before. _Is that really what Luke thought of him? That he was some heartless player? Is that what he’d become?_

“No, I don’t think so at least.” The words felt true as he said them. It was a fair point- he had been fairly lucky sexually as of late- but he didn’t think Rosario’s appeal had anything to do with her unavailability. That only added to her tragedy.

“I like her. I genuinely like and admire her.”

Luke surprised him with a quick pat on the back.

“I can’t remember the last time I saw you this upset about a girl, mate. It’s nice to know that you still have feelings even if you chose the worst person possible to have them for.”

“I still have feelings,” Tom grumbled and drained the rest of his glass.

Luke nodded noncommittally. “Yeah, but it’s been a while.”

Luke took his glass and went and refilled it. Once he had sat back down and placed it in front of Tom, his expression looked very serious.

“Alright, mate. It’s important that you don’t take what I say next the wrong way.”

Tom couldn’t really find the energy to care. He took another drink instead of a response.

“I want to prepare you for the consequences, if she makes a report.”

Tom interjected; he found the energy to care now. “She won’t. It was completely consensual. I mean, she came to _me_ the second time.”

"The second time?!” Luke’s eyes widened. He shook his head a little. “I’m getting side-tracked. Look, I just need you to understand that any time a situation like this happens, there’s the chance of a sexual harassment accusation. Even without that, there’s a chance of dismissal if the college finds out.” He looked right into Tom’s eyes, trying to emphasize the importance of his words. “It’s not a great chance but this sort of…affair, it looks bad on the university and that’s all any administration will see.”

Tom nodded bleakly. “I don’t think I need to worry about that, Luke,” he said genuinely. He thought back to Rosario’s words- if anything, she wanted to keep this quiet far more than he did. According to her argument, she was the one with more to lose anyways.

Luke nodded and gave him another quick thump on the back. “I highly doubt you’d be dismissed or even found out, I just needed to say my admins bit.”

“I know, man. I appreciate it.” Tom sighed. “While I don’t regret it happening, I know it’s for the best that it’s ended.”

Luke gave him a wane smile. “Hey, maybe it’s just a sign that you need to get back into the dating world. Just not with a student.”

“Ideally, no.” Tom forced a chuckle.

“Don’t hate me for suggesting this, but maybe Jess could set you up with one of his friends. If you’re not up to it, that’s fine, but you should probably meet some new women.”

Tom surprised both of them when he said, “Okay.”

He didn’t put much stock in set-ups, something Luke knew full well.

His friend looked shocked but relieved. “Alright, cool. I’ll talk to Jess about it. He loves playing bloody matchmaker.”

“Great”. Tom plastered a false grin on his face. It was slim but on the off chance it did help him get over Rosario, it couldn’t hurt.

It definitely couldn’t hurt him anymore than she already had.


	15. Wednesdays

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello! This is my first fic and only edited by me so any and all mistakes are mine. Comments and criticism appreciated! Enjoy!

It still surprised Tom how smoothly the last month had gone. November passed in a blur and he certainly kept busy. The semester was picking up pace and he had begun dating one of Luke and Jess’s friends- a very lovely woman called Liz- and found himself on constant double-dates.

As busy as he was between his work and his newly kindled not-quite-love life, Tom would be a liar if he said his days didn’t revolve around _her._

His schedule was perverted- Tom dreaded weekends and dreamed of Mondays because he knew he would see Rosario. He had tried to respect her wishes and temper what he now realized was obsession, but Wednesdays had still quickly become the highlight of his week. He looked forward to those like most people did Fridays- all because of the hour he got to spend alone with his TA. There were now two weeks left in the term and Tom was getting more and more nervous about it. A part of him thought the month-long holiday break from Rosario would be good for him; another part of him simply dreaded it.

Remarkably, his relationship with Rosario hadn’t altered very much after that fateful October day (and night). This, however, Tom attributed to Rosario’s own willpower more than anything else. She was the one who forced this plastic veneer of professionalism and appropriateness on every interaction.

And it worked, as much as Tom hated to admit it. Most days they operated just as any other professor and student. But some days, usually those precious Wednesdays when they holed up in his office to discuss Rosario’s research, Tom allowed himself to pretend they were more. For one hour each week, he allowed himself to simply be near her. He allowed himself to enjoy her smiles and jokes, to appreciate her wit and stubbornness. Despite how frustrated it left him, that hour with Rosario was the shot of colour in a black and white world.

That one hour was both the joy and the bane of his existence.

And if Liz noticed that he fucked her harder and always from behind on Wednesdays, she never made any mention of it.

Tom would rather die than admit it- just the thought curdled in his guilty stomach like soured milk- but when he fucked his girlfriend, when their bodies twisted together on the blue sheets of his bed, he thought always and only of his student.

           

* * *

 

The last month had been one of the hardest and longest of Rosario’s brief life.

Work was exhausting. Uni was exhausting. Excepting a few pub nights with Georgia, and even fewer pub nights with some of her fellow TAs, her social life was nonexistent. The library and cafes around campus had become like a second home.  Her days revolved day-in and day-out around learning.

It didn’t seem that her research and lectures were schooling enough- she was also subjected to lessons in temptation. Dr Hiddleston may have been sent by the devil himself, everything about him was so mouth-wateringly enticing, so perfect and so _close to touch._ He was the tall drink of water on a summer’s day and for Rosario, it was July.

Those lessons in temptation culminated in a weekly exam, Wednesday nights in his office. Every Wednesday, Rosario’s willpower was put to the test, stretched to the greatest extremes. She felt like a rubber band spread too thin. So far she had passed these exams but she knew it was only a matter of time until she snapped right into his bed.

Rosario fucking hated Wednesdays.

This Wednesday was one of the harder ones. Tom- Professor Hiddleston, Dr Hiddleston- looked as handsome as possible. Late at night like this, the soft stubble began to shade his chin again and his clothes were worn in from the day. His hair was a little less kempt- the curls he clearly tried so hard to tame in the mornings frizzed out to extreme touchability.

Rosario remembered what it had felt like to run her fingers through those curls. They had been soft but slightly starchy- the result of too much product. She wondered what it would be like to feel them without hair product, to rub her cheek against them.

When he leaned over her to peer at the passage she’d referenced in her paper, Rosario was so worked up that she scarcely dared to breathe.

“I’m not entirely sure this quotation is necessary here. It seems a bit erroneous and doesn’t have much to do with your actual argument.” He circled it on the paper, an angry slash of red ink.

“Er, yeah. If you say so.”

Hiddleston gave her a shrewish look. “I do say so.” His voice was the strangest mixture of sin and schoolteacher. “I think I have something-“ He shot out of his seat and sprang across the room to his bookshelf while Rosario tried to keep her eyes off of his ass.

_How the fuck does a teacher get a bum like that anyways?_

“Ah, yes.” He plucked a thick tome from the shelf and opened it. Rosario lifted her eyes guiltily to his face. She was so grateful he hadn’t caught her staring. “Erm, not that, not that,” he murmured to himself, a slender finger glossing over the pages. “Yes,” the finger stopped glossing to point victoriously. “Here we are. I think that would much better suit what you’re trying to say.”

He dropped the book on the table in front of her, and leaned over her shoulder. Forcing her gaze to the book, Rosario quickly read the passage and tried her very best to ignore his heat hovering over her.

"Yeah, you’re right. This is much better.”

He plopped back into the seat next to her. “You’re welcome, Rosario. Take it.”

God, it wasn’t fair the way his mouth lingered on her name, tasting each syllable.

Rosario swallowed hard and he definitely saw. Those clear blue eyes followed the rise of her throat and the corners of his mouth lifted up.

“Cheers,” she said shakily. She dragged her eyes back to the book and noticed the title. “Why do you even have this? I thought you didn’t do Latin outside of the classical ages?”

Tom- Hiddleston, Hiddleston, she reminded herself- grinned sheepishly. “I, er, actually got it because of you. I mean, um, I can hardly be expected to advise you on a subject I know little about,” he confessed.

Although it went against every instinct of self-preservation in her body, Rosario couldn’t help but smile at him. She could just picture him searching through the bookstore, looking for something to help her, to help him help her. The thought of him going out of his way to learn for her… it hit her in an unexpected way. Warmth and excitement fluttered in her belly in a way she had never experienced before.  

Tom grinned back at her in return. All teeth and wrinkled around the eyes, he had such a lovely and genuine smile.  He was lovely, really.

They sat there for longer than a moment, just staring and grinning at each other like a couple of dorks. There were no words.

Rosario collected herself first, reluctantly pulling them out of whatever sweet moment this was. “Have I made a convert of you? Are you gonna give up the golden age for the dark ages?” She teased.

Tom laughed, rich and full. “I wouldn’t do that, not even for you, darling.” The grin slipped from his face, his eyes wide.

_That wasn’t something he meant to say._

Sari’s recent mantra concerning Tom began to flash before her eyes: _ignore_ , _ignore, ignore_ in a bright red warning sign.

“You sure?” Her voice came out highly pitched and ugly. “I mean, you’ve gotta admit, there was a lot of good stuff in the medieval times. Plagues are always fun.”

The awkward spell was broken. He laughed again but not as deeply as before. “Believe it or not, plagues aren’t really my thing.”

“What is your thing?” Rosario couldn’t bite back the question in time.

His eyes shifted across her face in surprise. “Poetry,” he said softly. “The- the beauty of it, and the strength.”

He’d told her that before.

The pulse pounding in her throat told her that she was treading into dangerous territory, breaking all of her own rules. She shouldn’t have asked that. She shouldn’t be talking to him like this.  He was looking at her too intensely.

“I like poetry too,” she said lamely.

Those too-blue eyes narrowed; not in an accusatory way, but like he was trying to figure her out. “I know you do, Rosario,” he said finally.

“You can, um, call me Sari, if you want.” _What had gotten into her tonight?! Why the fuck was she saying these things?_

The surprise was evident on Tom’s handsome face.

“Alright, but you should call me Tom.” He turned away from her then and focused back on the papers and books before them.

Sari could feel the colour high in her cheeks and was suddenly so thankful he was no longer looking at her.

“I like _Rosario_ better, though. It suits you.” There was hesitation in his admission. He kept his eyes trained on the table.

Rosario nodded, although she wasn’t sure if he saw.

They spent the rest of the night working quietly.

Rosario found that she didn’t hate Wednesdays so much anymore.


	16. The Effects of the Subconcious

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Because I'm a little ahead of my writing schedule- two chapters in one week! I'll be back to regular posting Mondays/Tuesdays after this.

Rosario’s mouth was hot and wet on Tom’s neck.

“Ro-Rosario,” he forced out, his eyes rolling back in pleasure. “We can’t-“

She lifted those glorious lips from his skin. “Of course we can, Tom. I can’t resist you anymore.”

They were sitting in his office, at his desk. It was strange because they almost always sat at the coffee table near the wall instead. It was even stranger still as Rosario sat facing him on his lap.

He could feel the damp heat between her legs as she ground herself against him.

 _Oh god, she feels so amazing._ Tom was already painfully hard. Tipping her head back, Rosario rolled her hips over his again, her hands pressed against his chest. He took the opening to kiss her neck and chest, running his tongue along the contours of her collarbones and cleavage.

The breathy moan was almost enough to make him come.

Her mouth was on his now, lips and tongue and teeth and heat. Losing himself in the kiss, he felt a pleasure he had almost forgotten was possible. This was nothing like the hollow kisses he’d shared with Liz- this was pure and strong and _real._

Tom didn’t know how it happened, but suddenly their clothes were off. He could feel her wetness on his bare thigh.

The kisses were frantic now and desperate. There was no space between their bodies now, Rosario’s full breasts pressed tight against his chest.

Then Tom felt himself slide inside of her and his head spun. Bright lights swam behind his eyes. She was just as sweet and tight as he remembered, like she was made just for him.

She rode him hard and fast, aided by Tom’s hands grasping her ass.

He was already close to coming, the familiar tingling and tightening building in his abdomen and balls.

Her breasts bounced in front of his face and, unable to resist, he leaned forward to capture a russet nipple in his mouth.

They moved into a different position, Tom was now behind her, slamming her into the desk. He fucked her hard, chasing that exquisite end and finding it between her thighs.

“Oh god, Tom. Yes!” She cried. Tom cocked his hand back to spank her ass, enjoying the pinking of her smooth brown skin.

He smacked her again. And again.

The orgasm hit him suddenly and hard. Squeezing his eyes shut, he shot himself deep inside of her in long sweet bursts.

Slipping out of her, his cock felt weirdly wet. It was rubbing against something that wasn’t Rosario’s silky skin.

Tom opened his eyes and found himself face down in a pillow. Propping up on his arms, he realized that he was naked and in bed, his bed. He shifted his hips against the mattress and felt the telltale wet spot beneath him.

Burying his face back in the pillow, Tom let it muffle the groan.

_I cannot believe I just jizzed the bed._

He hadn’t had a wet dream in _years_. Probably not since he was a teenager and a virgin.

Jesus, he couldn’t even remember the last time he had a regular dream- much less one so vivid and pornographic. And it had been vivid: it was so lifelike, so uncanny.

He felt so strange and off. The feeling buried itself in his gut. _It felt so real. I can’t believe that wasn’t real_. Every touch, every detail- he felt like he had lived it.

The blanket pulling over his back roused him from his thoughts. He glanced over and nearly groaned again.

Hair covered the pillow next to him and it wasn’t the soft coarse curls he dreamed of.

Embarrassment heated his face.

He had forgotten that Liz had slept over. He was so grateful that she was still asleep. Frankly, her presence made the whole incident even more bizarre. They had had sex last night. He hadn’t needed the release- there’s no reason his subconscious should have forced a wet dream on him.

Tom rolled out of bed as quietly as he could and prayed that Liz didn’t roll over to his side. He walked to the bathroom, his bare feet padding along as softly as he could. He wet a washcloth and rubbing the half-dried cum off, he schemed. Asking Liz if she wanted to shower with him would get her out of bed and away from the stain on his side. He could wash and change the sheets after she left for work.

_Brilliant._

The air felt cold on his wet cock as he walked back to the bedroom to wake his sleeping girlfriend and put his plan in effect.

 

* * *

 

 

Rosario was daydreaming in the library. Watching the blinking cursor of her laptop had lulled her into an almost hypnotic state.

Maybe it was the restless night of sleep she’d had or the exciting promise of winter holiday, but Rosario couldn’t focus on her work at all.

Break began in exactly one week. All she had to do was get through the weekend and five days and she was free, from uni and, more importantly, from Tom.

Her resolve had been slipping- Tom crept in on her mind constantly. She shouldn’t have spoken to him like that on Wednesday. She can’t get more familiar with him. She can’t feed these feelings. The infatuation had gotten worse after that.

The way he smiled at her though… it had lit up his whole face. Tom had a great smile. Rosario used to think that his lips were a little too thin but she’d become too acquainted with that smile… and with what those lips could do.

She squeezed her thighs together beneath the table. Increasingly, she had been thinking about what happened in October. It felt both like an age ago and a moment ago.

She also found that, increasingly, she couldn’t _stop_ thinking about what had happened in October.

Maybe it was sleepiness and horniness and anxiety mixing together. She couldn’t help but think about what it would be like for his large hands to slip up her thighs.

She wanted him to fuck her against the table. She wanted to feel his hands on her throat again. She wanted him to bite and spank her.

And she wanted to do things to him.

The other day she almost got caught staring at his cock. He practically invited it- why else would he wear trousers so tight? She could basically see the length through the fabric.

Rosario remembered what it looked like bare and exposed, what it tasted like.

She could feel wetness pool between her legs. God, what she would do to get another taste, to swirl her tongue up and down and take him deep in her-

“Hey, Sari. Alright?”

Rosario’s eyes shot up and she nearly jumped in her seat.

Miranda, another TA she was friends with, smiled guiltily. “Sorry, did I scare you?”

"No, no. I was just miles away. Break can’t come soon enough, you know?”

Miranda nodded heavily. “Tell me about it. I don’t know if I’m even gonna make it.”

Rosario laughed as the girl sat down across from her. Rosario always felt mean for thinking it but Miranda reminded her a lot of a cow. Not in a bad way, she thought Miranda was quite pretty, but she had those same docile features- widespread brown eyes and a blunt nose.

“One more week.” Rosario jokingly raised her hands to the heavens in thanks.

“Seriously. I’ve got so much to do. I feel like I’ll regret going to Dr Hamilton’s Christmas party this weekend.”

Groaning, Rosario flopped back in her seat. “Oh shit. That’s this weekend, is it?”

Her friend replied with a nod. “Yeah- didn’t you get the email?”

Rosario vaguely recalled a snowflake-bedecked ecard reminder.

“Are you going to go?” Miranda asked, looking hopeful.

Rosario shrugged. “Probably. It’s a good networking opportunity. All the colleges rarely get together like that.”

“Yeah, cool, cool. I’m pretty excited about it- I really need the break.” She laughed, “even if it’s a professor party.”

Rosario laughed too. “Hey, at least it’ll be a nice spread. Hammy always gets the good food.”

“Definitely. And Dr Hiddleston will probably be there.” She waggled her eyebrows at Sari. “You’re so lucky to be with him. He’s _so_ hot.”

Rosario felt her blush all the way up to her temples. She shrugged again, glancing away at the vacant laptop screen. “Yeah. He’s pretty smart too. Not really my type though.”

_Yeah, I’m not really into perfect men with perfect cocks who go down on you first. They do nothing for me._

Miranda’s chocolaty eyes widened. “Really? Fair enough, I guess. I think I’d die if I were you.” She shivered. “But I’m advised by Martins and he looks just like a prune.”

Snickering, Rosario realized that that was exactly what Dr Martins looked like.

“Did you know he has, like, ten cats too?” Miranda leaned, “I’m not even exaggerating. Ten. I have the proof too because he has photos of all of them. And he smells like he has ten cats.”

Rosario’s laugh rang a little too loudly through the quiet of the library. “Seriously? Ew. Is there cat hair everywhere?”

“Everywhere. It’d be pretty cute actually if he didn’t smell like kitty litter all the time- he’s so little and old and really loves those cats.”

“That’s pretty sweet actually.” Rosario thought briefly of an elderly Tom like that.

Standing up, Miranda seemed to recognize Rosario’s distractedness. “I’ll let you get back to work, Sari. See you tomorrow?”

Sari nodded. “Yeah, I’ll be there. See you then.”

Miranda waved and walked off.

Rosario watched the cursor blink another moment.

_Now, where was I? Oh yeah, Tom was about to face fuck me…._


	17. The Holiday Party, Part One

Rosario was doing one last checkup in the mirror of the car she borrowed from Georgia. She was wearing her favourite party dress- a structured and tight black Italian number that she had spent way too much on. It fit perfectly; it emphasized her tiny waist, the round swell of her ass, and the sweetheart neckline flatteringly framed her high breasts. It was sexy but conservative enough to wear to the holiday party.

She had twisted her frizzy corkscrew curls into a haphazard up do and added a swipe of lipstick on top of subtle smoky winged liner. She did one more twist in the mirror. _I really do look quite fit._

Too bad it’s a faculty-only party.

She was slightly dreading seeing Tom but she would be joking herself if she didn’t admit that there was a part of her that wanted to see him. And that there was a part of her that wanted him to see her, especially in this dress.

She got out of the car and pulled her coat tight around her. She was a few blocks from Hammy’s house and it was quite a cold night for the walk. As she went, she recognized Tom’s car slightly closer to the house.

She climbed the stoop and let herself in the open door. Dr Hamilton’s home was gorgeous- large and meticulously well styled. Hanging her jacket on one of the racks in the foyer, she moved in the direction of warmth and voices.

A fire crackled merrily and party guest mingled and drank around a large Christmas tree in the center of the room. It was already a very large group but, just as she feared, it was primarily professors and other academics. She wished that she could have convinced Georgia to come with her but she had already had a weekend break planned with her new boyfriend. She soon found a familiar face in the crowd hurrying towards her.

Miranda from the English department greeted her with a smile and small hug.

“Oh, thank god someone else is here. I got here way too early and way too sober. I’ve been so awkward with all these profs.”

Rosario laughed, “Rule of thumb- always be twenty minutes late.”

The relief was evident on Miranda’s face. “Let’s go get drinks. Hammy’s sprung for the nice champagne.”           

"Yes, please.”

As they moved through the party, saying hello to various guests, Rosario felt a pair of eyes on her. Somehow, without even looking, she knew it was Tom. After getting her drink, she glanced around to see him.

He looked tall and gorgeous in an immaculate white dress shirt and tight black pants. He was talking to a few other professors and had his hand on the small of an attractive woman’s back. Sari had never seen the woman before and felt the champagne churn nastily in her stomach. She focused on the bubbles in the elegant flute, determined not to look at him any longer.

It shouldn’t surprise her that he brought a date. It didn’t surprise her actually; what surprised her was how much it hurt.

She chatted with Miranda for about twenty minutes but Miranda had since wandered off to talk to some other friends.

Thus, Rosario was milling about awkwardly, alone, and eating a disgusting number of hors d’oeurves when a particularly sleazy looking guy about her age caught her eye from across the room.

He was medium height with a somewhat good-looking if smug face. He had the air of a posh public school brat who had never grown out of it.

He grinned and began to move towards her, his eyes roving up and down her body obnoxiously. His approach reminded her of a vulture circling a corpse. Rosario felt a wave of disgust and irritation go through her.

“Hello there beautiful.”

_Well, you can fuck right off._

Sleazy extended a hand to shake. “I’m Hunter.”

 _Well, you can fuck right off, Hunter_.

“Rosario.” She shook his hand as briefly as possibly and flashed a tight, fake smile.

“Rosario?” His eyebrows went up at this and his sleazy grin grew wider. “What does that mean- ‘rosary’ right?”

“Yes,” she said distractedly. Sari had just noticed Tom eying her and her unwanted companion from across the room.

“How, uh, _virginal_.” Hunter purred, looking way too pleased with himself.

_I may actually vomit on him._

“Well, that’s one disgusting way of looking at, especially coming from someone named after a rain boot.” Sari said shortly, her eyes focusing back on his face.

“Aw, I didn’t mean it like that. It’s a lovely name,” he simpered, “for a lovely girl.”

Sari didn’t even attempt to hide her grimace at that, which, unfortunately, didn’t seem to deter him at all. She attempted to change the subject- maybe she could bore him into leaving her alone.

“You’re one of the masters as well then? Which department?”

His grin did falter slightly at her rapid switch of conversation. “Religious studies.”

 _What? How bizarre_.

“Religious studies?” Her voice was short and clipped but it seemed he was taking her deflection small talk topics as genuine interest. He sidled slightly closer to her, leaning in as his voice took a more intimate tone.

“I’ve always been interested in religions, _Rosary._ I-“

_Abort. Abort._

“Could you go get me another champagne? Thanks.” She cut him off. He stumbled a little at her abrasiveness but gave her what he clearly thought was a charming smile and nodded.

"Of course, cutie. I’ll be right back.”

_It’s funny how you can read at Oxford and most of the time still be a complete knobhead._

The second his back had turned, Sari made to bolt. In her haste she tripped on the edge of one of Hammy’s ornate rugs and went plummeting to the floor.

“ _Shit!”_ She landed on her hands and a flare of pain went up her right wrist. Simultaneously, she felt the eyes of her fellow partygoers turn towards her and a pair of cool hands on her back helping her up.

“Sorry, I’m fine. Really, I don’t need help.” She stumbled to her feet as she looked up at the owner of the helping hands. Even more heat hit her embarrassed face when she realized it was Tom. _Where did he even come from? Hadn’t he been across the room?_ Sleazy Hunter stood behind him looking confused and useless. A pair of rain boots really  _would_ have been more useful. 

“Are you okay? Have you hurt yourself?” Tom asked quietly, he kept his hands on each shoulder.

 “Yes, I’m fine. I’m fine.” She repeated louder over his shoulder to Hunter. She noticed Tom’s date eyeballing them across his other shoulder.

“Did you hurt your arm?” Tom’s concerned blue eyes glanced down. She hadn’t even noticed she’d been rubbing her wrist; she was more concerned with the social nightmare she’d found herself in.

“I said I was fine, Tom.” She repeated sharply, trying to tug out of his grip as discretely as possible.

He released her and his features tightened. With a taut mouth, he half turned and told Hunter, “Go get her some ice, would you?”

Hunter nodded dumbly. _What an idiot._

The stare of Tom’s date was getting more and more annoyed. Rosario took pity and said, “Who’s your date?”

Tom seemed to remember himself- and the fact that he came with another woman- and took a step back by the woman’s side. “This is Liz. Liz, Rosario.”

Liz stepped forward and offered a hand, “Pleasure.”

Liz was tall and elegant with fair brown hair and a pale complexion; she seemed the opposite of Rosario and the opposite of pleased.

“Nice to meet you,” Rosario went to extend her own hand out but retracted immediately when a burst of pain shot through it.

Tom frowned, “You’re not fine. Do you need me to take you home?” Once again, her professor had turned all his attention on her and seemed to forget the woman standing next to him. Rosario actually felt bad for her.

Rosario opened her mouth to reply when Horrid Hunter returned with an ice pack. “Thanks,” she said abruptly and reached out with her good hand to intercept it before Tom could. “Could you go get me some water?”

Hunter’s face flashed with annoyance but he nodded and disappeared again.

She placed it against her pained wrist with a little sigh of relief.

“It’s probably sprained.” Tom said, very matter-of-factly. “Let me take a look at it. We should find something to wrap it with.”

Rosario cringed at his tone. He was acting bossy but not like her teacher would. 

He had already put his hand on her back to guide her out of the room when he turned back to Liz, “Do you mind, Liz? I’ll be right back.”

“Oh, I don’t mind,” She said. Her face said that she very clearly did mind.

Tom either didn’t notice or didn’t care. He nodded and quickly wheeled Rosario out of the crowded room.

The second they were away from their fellow party guests, Rosario hissed, “What are you doing? I said I was fine.”

Tom’s jaw tightened. He opened a door and pushed her inside the loo. Like the rest of Hammy’s house, it was large and luxurious. “I’m just taking care of my student. I do think that you’ve actually sprained it.”

Rosario bristled at that. He ignored her and went to rummage through the medicine cabinet.  

“I think I’ll survive, thanks.”

He turned towards her aggressively. At such close proximity, Tom towered over her. Between his height and his angry face, Rosario actually felt a little intimidated.

“You are so childish. You know what? Suit yourself.” With that, he exited the bathroom, letting the door slam behind him.

Rosario fiddled with a packet of bandages but found she wasn’t capable of wrapping one-handed. She suspected that her wrist would hurt too much for her to drive home.

She desperately just wanted to wrap her wrist and wrap this failure of a night to an end but found she could do neither.

She sat down on the closed toilet lid and sighed. Miranda confessed to having had a couple drinks of Hammy’s nice champagne out of nervousness and had had a few more since Rosario arrived. She had the choice of asking Tom or Horrid Hunter for a ride.  _Can a pair of wellies even drive?_

She groaned as she realized whom she had to ask and stood up. She glanced in the mirror briefly, gathered her pride, and went to go find a ride home.


	18. The Holiday Party, Part Two

Tom stood outside the bathroom door a moment, debating whether or not to go back in. He felt hot and huffy. He knew Rosario had really hurt herself but her pride was just so irritating.

It didn’t help that she looked so beautiful tonight.

He didn’t want to admit that that had added to his frustration, but he couldn’t help but imagine going back in there, ripping that stupid little dress off, and fucking her senseless against the sink.

He shook his head and went to go find his girlfriend.

Liz was standing in the posh foyer by herself when Tom found her. He began to apologize profusely. He was still irritated with Rosario but was beginning to feel even more irritated with himself.

“I’m so sorry about that, darling. I’ve had some experiences with strained wrists myself and they are not fun. “

Liz gave him a tight and disbelieving smile. “Right, Tom.”

He reached out and stroked her arm lightly. “How about we go have a drink, hm?”

Her body stiffened. She crossed her arms and shook her head, “No, thank you.”

_Fuck._

“So- _Rosario_ seems quite young to be a professor,” She commented, in a carefully nonchalant tone.

Tom tried to hide his cringe but did not think he was very successful. “She’s not a professor, actually. She’s in the Masters programme. She’s, um, my TA.” He admitted sheepishly.

Liz straightened slightly. Her pretty face was pinched in disapproval and disappointment.

“I see. That’s-“

“Excuse me, Tom?” The devil herself appeared next to him, all uncomfortable and embarrassed and sexy.

Liz’s eyes bore into him as he turned towards her. “Yes?”

 Rosario looked as though she’d rather be anywhere else than where she was right now. Tom felt the same way. “Might I get that ride home, on second thought? If you were both leaving- I don’t…” Tom couldn’t tell if the pain on her face was from her wrist or from her words. “I don’t think that I can drive.”

“You could call a taxi,” Liz piped up. There was a warning in her tone.

Before Tom could stop himself he replied, “Nonsense, I’ll drive her.”

_Fuck._

Liz’s eyebrows rose. He could see the hurt swimming in her blue eyes. Rosario looked like she couldn’t decide if she should stay or run away.

She made a decision. Rosario began to move back, speaking rapidly, “You know what, it’s fine. I’ll call a cab and-“

“No. Tom will take you home.” Liz interrupted her resolutely. “Tom will take you home and I think I’ll call that taxi for myself.”

“Liz, please.” Tom groaned. He really fucked this one up.

“No, it’s fine. Just go.”

“Liz,” Tom reached out for her but she darted out of his reach. She went to the coat rack and threw him his jacket. She grabbed her own and shrugged it on.

“This is so humiliating,” she muttered. “I just _knew_ there was something off about you, Tom. I just thought it was an ex or something and you needed time! You’ve clearly got some fucked up _crush_ thing going on here.” She gestured between him and Sari. “And if you think I’m going to stand here all night while you make googly eyes at another woman, no, a _girl_ \- your student!-you are dead wrong. It’s over. Just go.” Liz turned and went towards the direction of the loo.

Tom slipped his coat on and didn’t try to go after her. He didn’t turn back to look as he went out the door but he heard Rosario’s fast little footsteps behind him.

He didn’t look back as he stalked to his car. He didn’t look at her after they’d both gotten in, the sound of his slammed door echoing around them.

He didn’t even look at her when she began to speak, her voice thick with emotion.

“Jesus Christ, Tom. I am so sorry. I shouldn’t have asked. I had no idea-“

“Just be quiet, Sar. I really don’t want to talk about it.” His hands flexed white over the steering wheel.

_Of course she had no idea. Of course she has no idea that the thought of her consumes my every moment._

Rosario shut up. She sat back in her seat, her eyes watering, and shivered violently. Her coat was sitting on her lap.

Tom sighed. He reached over, grabbed her jacket, and threw it over her, tucking the sides in like one would a blanket until she was cocooned in.

“Does your wrist still hurt?” He asked softly.

“Yeah. I couldn’t get it through the arm hole,” she admitted with a sniff.

Tom nodded and started the car. He turned the heat up for her and began to drive.

The guilt radiating off Rosario was almost palpable. She wasn’t crying so much, but he did see a stray tear fall down her cheek. Tom sighed again.

“It’s not your fault, Sar. She and I were never going to work out anyways.”

Rosario just sniffled in response. It struck Tom that she simply didn’t know what to say. He could almost see Liz’s accusations running around her brain.

“I thought… I don’t know. It’s been all right. Liz and I have been dating for a month, _had_ been dating for a month.” Tom corrected himself. He clenched his jaw and prepared for the big confession. “I thought I was over you and it had just been sex. And I thought that I could be around you with her and not be so obviously drawn to you but I couldn’t. And that’s not your fault. It’s not your fault I don’t care about her the same way that I care about you.”

Rosario didn’t respond. Tom wasn’t entirely sure if that was better or worse than her talking. The silence and the tension stretched long between them.

“You,” her voice was watery. Tom kept his eyes trained on the road but he desperately wanted to look at her, to read her face. “You what?”

“I have feelings for you, Rosario.” Tom said through slightly gritted teeth. _Jesus, she has the sharpest mind in the world except the one time I bloody-_

“I have feelings for you too.” She said so quietly Tom might have missed it.

“What?”

“I have feelings for you too.” Rosario repeated a little louder. When Tom glanced at her, she looked mortified at the confession.

Tom couldn’t help the smile spreading over his face. He was happier than he’d felt in ages. With his eyes on the road, he reached out to grab her hand.

“Ouch! Jesus, Tom!” Rosario shrieked, pulling her injured hand away.

“Oh, sorry! I forgot!” Tom apologized. He was still smiling.

He smiled all the way to her flat. If there was such a thing as mutually embarrassed joy, they both sat in it for the rest of the ride.

*

Tom had jumped out of the car first once they’d gotten to Rosario’s flat, rushing around to her side of the car to open the door for her.

He’d also opened the door to her flat for her. Rosario had struggled with the keys in her left hand for a few moments before he just reached out and took them.

As they walked in, Rosario felt unbelievably grateful that Georgia was off for the weekend with her new boyfriend Kumar. This was the first time Tom had ever seen her flat and Rosario wished that she had thought to tidy up a bit earlier.

Of course, she could never have anticipated the turn of events at the party.

“There’s, um, a first aid kit in the toilet.” She said awkwardly. She tossed her coat over the sofa in the front room and invited him to do the same. She kicked off her shoes as well. His hand automatically went to her shoulder to help balance her as she stepped out of her high heels.

Tom seemed almost too big for her apartment, she thought, as they walked to the bathroom. He was entirely too tall and manly and old.

She was just being nervous.

They were both quiet as he wrapped her wrist. She was perched on the counter of the sink, her legs dangling between his as he stood over her. His brow was furrowed in concentration as he tightly wound the bandage. His tongue poked out the corner of his mouth slightly.

Rosario wondered if she should kiss him. His thin mouth looked unbelievably kissable at this proximity. Did he expect to have sex now? She desperately wanted to but she felt a bit iffy about sleeping with someone who had literally been dumped in front of her (and because of her) not even an hour ago.

“Does this hurt?” Tom murmured, testing his wrap. His low voice forced Rosario to fight off a shiver as she shook her head.

“No, that feels a lot better. Thanks.” Tom was still focused on her hand, holding it in both of his. The wrap and his fingers looked pale and pink against her olive skin. Rosario couldn’t get over how intensely gentle he was and how focused his attentions were.

Suddenly Tom lifted her hand, carefully not bending her wrist, to press a warm kiss in the center of her palm.

With that encouragement, Sari lifted her free hand to his hair, sinking her fingers into the soft strands.

Tom leaned into her hand and turned his head to aim a kiss into that palm as well.

Rosario felt like she might explode. She wondered how she deserved all this when she had literally just become a home wrecker.

“Will you stay the night?” She wished her voice didn’t sound so small and unsure when she asked that.

Tom smiled into her hand, obviously enjoying the feel of her fingers against his hair. “I’d like to, if you’ll let me.”

Rosario let slip an embarrassing little strangled noise and he chuckled. He released her injured wrist and wrapped his now free hand around the back of her neck. He brought her face close to his and rested his forehead against hers.

Sari had always hated when people did that in films. There was nothing cheesier than a romantic forehead touch. But right now, as he leaned against her, Sari would be damned if this wasn’t the nicest thing in the world.

Tom spoke softly, “I think we should take this slow.” She could feel his breath against her lips and nodded. While every inch of her body, except her sore wrist- the bitch- protested at the thought, she knew if they slept together they would both probably regret it.

Tom wrapped his arms around her and lifted her off the counter like a child. He carried her down hall into the room she indicated and set her down on the bed. If she thought it looked too big in her kitchen, he looked gigantic in her bedroom. He slowly helped her out of her dress, carefully avoiding her wrist.

She saw his eyes flare when he saw the stockings and garter underneath but besides a very slow caress across her hip, he made no move except to undress her.

When she was finally left in nothing, Tom quickly took off his own clothing and crawled into the bed with her.

She was genuinely sort of surprised when his feet didn’t dangle off the end.

Tom tucked her under his arm gently and just like that, skin to skin, they both fell asleep.


	19. Morning After

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> So I know I'm the actual worst. I swore I would never be one of those writers who just drops off the face of the earth but here I am!!!! Life has been super crazy and hectic- I'm between THREE jobs right now- so I probably won't get the chance to post again until next week.   
> I promise the story isn't done!! A lot more fun, a lot more drama, and a lot more smut to come! Thanks for sticking with me!

Tom awoke to a vibrating mobile, an empty bed, and the strangest mix of contentment and guilt he had ever felt. He reached to grab his phone of out the pocket of the trousers on the floor and answered it without looking at the ID. He already knew who it would be.

“Hello?” He kept his voice quiet.

“What the actual fuck is fucking wrong with you?!”

“Luke, mate-“

“No! Liz came round late last night in tears, in tears Tom. What did you do to her? All she could do was cry about you and that TA!”

Tom groaned and flung his arm over his eyes. “I fucked up.”

"That’s the understatement of the bloody century. God damn it, Tom. How could you be such an asshole?” Luke’s voice was getting too loud and indignant through the tinny phone speaker.

“I know. You think I don’t know that? I feel terrible.” Tom did feel terrible. He felt terrible and happy and guilty and ecstatic all at the same time.

"You feel terrible?!” Luke asked sarcastically. “That’s rich. How did this even happen? I thought things were going well with Liz.”

Tom had opened his mouth to reply when Luke’s voice cut him off again.

“And please tell me Liz was wrong and that you didn’t go home with her.”

Tom closed his mouth and was silent for a moment. He stared up at Rosario’s white ceiling and curled deeper into her white bedclothes. They smelled like her and it slightly mollified him.

Apparently Tom’s silence was answer enough for Luke. “You did. Of course you did.”

“I didn’t intend to!” Tom shot quietly; he could begin to hear Rosario in another room. “Things were going well with Liz, I just….” He sighed in frustration. “She wasn’t _her_ , man. I thought I was over her but I wasn’t. I didn’t mean for Liz to get hurt-“

“Well, she did get hurt Tom! I don’t understand how you could be so selfish.”

Tom realized that selfish was exactly the word for what he had been.

Luke huffed loudly into the phone. “Are you with her right now?”

“Yes.”

There was another huff. “I’ve got to go. I’ll talk to you later.”

Tom sat up in bed, “Luke, wait.”

“No, I can’t deal with this level of fucked up, Tom. I’ll come round later if you can pull yourself out of the 23 year old _student._ ” He pronounced ‘student’ like it was a filthy obscenity and hung up before Tom could reply.

Tom flopped back on the bed, tossed his mobile onto the pile of clothes on the floor, and groaned. Luke would forgive him. It would be a while but he would. Jess would probably hate him for eternity. He wasn’t convinced that Jess hadn’t already hated him anyways.

Tom got out of bed. He pulled on his pants and a tee shirt and wandered out into the hallway.

There was a delicious smell coming from the kitchen. For a brief moment, he was reminded of his fantasy of cooking for Rosario the morning after they fucked.

He turned into the kitchen and was greeted by the sight of a fantasy he had never realized he had: Rosario was cooking something in the oven, her hair was an absolute mess and she was wearing nothing but a much too large tee shirt. When she bent down to check something, Tom could see her bare bum as her shirt pulled up.

“Good morning.”

He smiled when she jumped a little bit, standing up with wide eyes.

“Good morning,” she smiled back. She looked so charming standing there with a slight blush.

Tom moved over to stand beside her; he slung an arm around her waist companionably and kissed the top of her head. “How’s your wrist?”

She smiled up at him again. “ Fine. I’m making a frittata,” she indicated to the mess of eggshells on the stove. “Were you talking to someone?”

Tom’s smile faded a bit. “Yeah. Just my mate calling to tear me a new one about Liz.”

Rosario made a small ‘o’ with her mouth. “I’m sorry.”

Tom squeezed her side affectionately. “Don’t be. It’s really not your fault.”

She smirked slightly, “Oh, I know that now. I’m still sorry for you though.”

Tom moved his hand to swat at her bum playfully. She laughed and tried to dodge the blow, pulling away from him.

“Tea?”

Tea sounded exactly like what he needed. “Please, thanks.”

Rosario started bustling around the kitchen and Tom sat on a stool in front of the kitchen island. He really would have been content to just watch her.

Once she placed two mugs of tea on the counter, she sat in the stool next to him. Tom tried to keep his eyes off her thighs; he’d been very good about taking it slow but her scampering about and her round ass was doing things to him.

He took a sip when he was struck by a sudden thought.

“Are you my girlfriend now?”

Rosario spat her tea out in surprise. “What?” She spluttered, reaching for a napkin to sop up the tea up.

“Are we dating now?”

A frown creased Rosario’s forehead and her lengthy pause made Tom nervous.

“I mean,” she got up to peek into the oven. “I don’t know. Are we?”

“I don’t know. I don’t think we’re not, if that makes sense.”

She nodded and grabbed a pair of oven mitts. Tom felt his blood run south when she bent down to take the pan out of the oven.

“Can you grab some plates?” She gestured to a cupboard. Tom got up and purposefully rubbed himself against her as he walked by.

The immediate stiffening of her spine was incredibly gratifying. Rosario turned and grabbed some silverware out of a drawer and began to divide up the eggy dish.

Tom wrapped his arms around her from behind. He ran his fingers across the hem of her tee shirt, exploring the thighs beneath it, and the skin higher.

He could feel her sharp intake of breath. “I thought we were taking it slow.” 

Tom bent to press a kiss against her neck. “I can take it slow, darling,” He murmured. “I can take it very slow.”

Rosario rubbed her ass against him unconsciously- Tom’s erection thrilled at the motion.

He pressed down on her back to bend her over against the counter. Her fingers splayed out on the cool marble top. Tom hissed at the sight of her plump ass as he pulled her tee shirt up. He ran an experimental finger along her bare sex and found her wet and ready. He reached down to pull his cock out and had just run it along her wet folds when the front door slammed open.

* * *

 

Rosario felt the head of his erection press against her and the air caught in her throat. God, his dick felt so perfect rubbing against her but it wasn’t close to enough.

The sound of the front door startled her so much that she nearly knocked the frittata off the counter.

She and Tom exchanged a panicked glance- he hurriedly tucked his penis back into his underwear and sat back down on the stool as she pulled her tee shirt back down over her hips. She saw him shifting his legs together to try to hide the very obvious and very large hard-on he had.

“Gee?” She called.

“Yeah, it’s me.” Her friend’s familiar voice called from the hall. “ I didn't know you were here. I didn't see my car coming in. That smells delicious whatever you’re….” The voice trailed off as its owner walked into the kitchen. She spied Tom sitting at the kitchen island and frowned, her eyes darting back and forth between the strange man and her roommate. “Uh, hi.”

“Hey, Gee. How are you? How was it with Kumar? Want some frittata?”

Maybe if she acted like everything was good and normal, it would be good and normal. Maybe if she never acknowledged Tom’s near-naked presence, Georgia wouldn’t even notice him. Maybe she could convince her that he was a figment of her imagination.

“Fine.” Georgia’s eyebrows were getting higher and higher.

 _Just play along, Tom. Stay very still and don’t move at all. She is like a shark- she can only sense movement._  

Tom gave a little wave from his seat. “Hello, I’m Tom. We met that-“

“I remember,” She cut him off crisply. There was a chance that Georgia’s eyebrows may actually disappear into her hairline. She straightened suddenly, “Ro, a word please.”

She quickly went back out the doorway and Rosario gave Tom a quick shrug before she followed.

Georgia was standing in the living room with her arms crossed and the most imperious expression Rosario had even seen her manage.

“What the fuck, Ro? Are you fucking serious?” She didn’t even bother to keep her voice down.

"Jesus, Georgia. I didn’t want you to find out like this.” _I didn’t want you to find out at all._

Rosario ran a hand through her already fucked up hair. She could feel the blush on her cheeks.

Georgia gave a laugh that bordered on hysterical. “You didn’t want me to find out like this? Haha, honey, me finding out should be the absolute last of your concerns. You’re fucking your fucking professor!” She hissed.

“I know, I know. It’s not ideal-“

Georgia interrupted her with another sarcastic laugh, louder this time. “Not ideal? That’s one way to fucking describe it.” She looked very deeply into Rosario’s eyes. “I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but your professor is in our kitchen _in his pants!”_

“Look, it just happened last night. We didn’t sleep together- I mean, we _have_ , but not last night-“

“I can’t believe you slept with him and didn’t tell me.” Georgia’s face had gone from completely livid to slightly hurt and mostly livid.

“God, Gee, I didn’t even want to admit it to myself, let alone you. Do you think I wanted this to happen?”

“Oh my god, Ro.” Georgia placed her hands on her friend’s arms. “Is he taking advantage of you?”

“No!” Sari shook her head forcefully. “No, no, no- that’s not what I meant.”

Georgia’s face twisted in doubt.

“I promise it’s not like that, Georgia. I like him. I really like him.”

Georgia managed a small, insincere smile. “You must. I know you wouldn’t jeopardize your degree for anything less.” She chuckled darkly. “I know I told you that you need to get out there and take more risks but this is not what I bloody meant.” She sighed deeply.

“I know, do you want some frittata?”

“Yeah, Kumar really wore me out. I’m starving.” 

Rosario snorted and rolled her eyes. Together they walked back into the kitchen for the most awkward breakfast any of them had ever shared.

 


	20. Slow

Tom thought Rosario’s roommate was… _nice,_ if maybe neurotic.

Georgia had spent breakfast flashing glances, speculative and suspicious between her roommate and Tom respectively as they sat across the counter from her. Forcing horrid small talk, Tom had learned that she was a law student and that they had met at uni. Beside him, Rosario was quiet. Her withdrawn attitude would have worried Tom if not for her bare foot tracing patterns against his leg under the table.

Tom had had to force himself to think about radishes to keep his dick from hardening.

Georgia disappeared into her room after breakfast with one last lingering look at Rosario.

Leaning back with a massive exhale, Sari caught Tom’s eye with a false grin.

 “Guess that cat’s out of the bag.”

“Sorry about that,” Tom said contritely. He wasn’t sorry at all actually- he was _happy_ it was finally happening. If they were going to have a proper relationship then people had to know, right? Somewhere inside him, something dark and needy would remember her hesitation.

Tom’s large hand almost completely covered one of her naked thighs. He wanted to talk about happier things.

“What do you want to do today, Sar? We could go watch a film, or go for a walk, or something.”

Her expression only faltered briefly before melting into a warm smile.

“I actually have to be somewhere at noon, Tom. Study thing.”

Tom’s heart fell a little. “Dinner?”

Even that minute shake of her head sent her curls flying. “I’ve got plans. I’m getting dinner with an old friend.”

Tom was more than a little offended that she didn’t even offer to break them before she leaned forward and, pressing those full lips against his, kissed him more sweetly than Tom could have ever imagined.

“Maybe we could do something tomorrow. But I’d really appreciate it if you could drive me to pick up Georgia’s car. I think my wrist is well enough to drive.” Her voice was honeyed and her dark eyes full. “And I’d be _very_ appreciative.” Her tongue brushed her lips at the implication.

Swallowing hard, Tom saw her eyes watch the movement and a wry smile pulled up her lips.

 “I really do want to take it slow.” That was probably the hardest thing Tom had ever had to say.

Rosario snorted loudly before the sound dissolved into chuckles. “That’s not what you implied twenty minutes ago!”

"Yeah, but I mean it now.”

Her laughter grew so loud Georgia shouted at them from her room.

They got dressed quietly and quickly; it took all of Tom’s self-restraint to keep from pulling the clothes she put on back off of her.

He dropped her off three blocks away from her car in fear of someone seeing them together. She didn’t kiss him goodbye and as he watched her walk away, Tom thought he might have found himself in fantastic trouble.

 

* * *

 

 

Alisha was all contradictions- equal parts no-nonsense boss and hopeless romantic, inky black locs and baby pink lipstick. She was trying to become a different kind of doctor than the ones Rosario was usually surrounded with. She worked in pediatrics and had very little free time and entirely too much work; she loved her job and had many joys in her life, but also struggled with the pressure and misery that come with a doctor’s work. She was very sensitive and kind and Rosario had worried about her when she became a doctor; sometimes patients didn’t heal and that was a tragedy that occurred everyday. But Alisha was strong and her kindness had only grown stronger since.

They had grown up together but Alisha lived in London, and although London wasn’t that far away, she didn’t have much free time.

Tonight was a rare and beautiful exception. Rosario relished having her friend sit across from her and being able to tell her about Tom.

Rosario loved Georgia but Alisha could read her like a book- something made abundantly clear about ten minutes into their dinner.

“So what gives? What is it you’re not telling me?” A finger shook at her. “Don’t pretend because I can tell.”

Slowly finishing the bite of chicken tikka masala in her mouth, Rosario swallowed and sighed. “I think that I’m kind of dating my professor.”

Their food was quickly forgotten as Rosario launched into an abridged version of the last three months.

Alisha did not interrupt her once. When her story was finished, Alisha smiled widely, her teethed flashing white against her skin. “Do you remember that story from class you were obsessed with in college? The Latin one? Was it Virgil or something?”

“Dido and Aeneas, you mean?” Rosario offered, confused at the direction the conversation had taken. _Did she not realize that I just admitted to shagging my professor?_

“Yes, that’s it.” Alisha smacked her hand on the table. “Dido and Aeneas.”

Sari nodded- she did remember that story. She remembered it very well in fact; it was the thing that cemented her love of history and Latin.

“This reminds me of it.” There was a dreamy look in her eye. “You, the beautiful and powerful Queen of Africa-“

“Dido was the queen of Carthage,” Sari interjected.

“Carthage is in Africa, innit? I was close enough.”

“Hardly- one city doesn’t make her the queen of all of Africa.”

Alisha silenced her with a vicious look. “ _Anyways-_ you are the beautiful _African queen_ , he’s the hot Roman warrior-“

“Trojan.”

Alisha’s nostrils flared and she closed her dark eyes briefly. “If you don’t stop bloody correcting me Rosario Jones, I swear I’m going to-“

“Sorry, sorry. Please continue.”

“Ugh. I thought I was speaking your nerd language but whatever. Well, _anyways_ , you’re each other’s perfect match and your love is _beautiful,_ but fate keeps you apart. They don’t end up together, right, he leaves and it’s sad?”

Rosario nodded and her throat suddenly felt very dry. “There’s actually a mass suicide in some versions.”

Alisha looked completely exasperated; one hand went to the crown of her hair in irritation. “Besides that- maybe you could fix the story. Keep what you’ve built _and_ your love. You’ve worked so hard to be where are you and to follow your dreams but you deserve love and happiness too. Does he make you happy?”

Rosario felt a tingling pressure behind her eyes and began to ferociously blink back tears. “Yes,” she admitted quietly. “He does. And I think…I think I make him happy too.”

Concern creased Alisha’s face and she asked, “So what’s the problem? Are you asking for permission or ”

“It’s just not that easy….” Rosario sighed- she tried but couldn’t keep the pain from cracking her voice. “He’s still my professor, Lisha. And maybe it’s just physical, our chemistry is crazy. Even if it’s not, we’ll still never be able to have a normal relationship; it’ll always be secrets and-“

Alisha interrupted her with an easy shrug. “Fine, you be Aeneas. Leave him.”

Rosario hesitated. “That’s not that easy either…”

She was surprised to see the slightly victorious smile that crossed her friend’s face. “See- that’s it right there. You’re hesitating because you don’t want to leave him. You want him.” She stuck a slender black finger in Sari’s face. “I know you, Sar, and you want him bad. You want him bad enough to risk getting caught so you need to fight to keep him. Make sacrifices, not your career, but other things. Make it work.”

Nodding dumbly, two tears passed threat-level and rolled down her face.

“I want you to be happy and I can see your face light up when you talk about him,” Alisha said. “YOLO. Don’t let him be the thing you let get by you.”

"Thanks,” Sari sniffled. “You always know just want to say, Lishy.”

Alisha stretched her hand across the table and put it in Rosario’s.

Rosario’s voice was scratchy when she said, “I can’t believe you remembered all that Dido stuff.”

She could see the snort reverberate through Alisha’s body. “You really were obsessed with it for a while. You would relate _everything_ to the bloody _Aeneid_. You do like a tragedy, don’t ya?”

With a watery chuckle, Rosario shrugged. “It’s what got me into Latin.”

Rolling her eyes, Alisha shook her head. “Look, I don’t know if you told me all this to get my permission or to have someone tell you no or whatever, but I think this is what you want. Is it?”

“I think so. It’s at least worth finding out.”

 

* * *

           

For the first time in a long time, Tom spent a Saturday night alone. Luke had never shown up; late into the night, he had sent a terse text message saying that he would see him next week.

Hoping Luke just needed time to cool off, Tom resigned himself to a night alone. He watched telly and he went for a run. He wondered what old friend Rosario was getting dinner with and whether it was a man.

Could it have been a date? What if she was seeing someone before last night like he had?

Another surge of guilt hit Tom’s stomach as Liz’s hurt face flashed behind his eyes.

Sitting on the couch, Tom leaned deeply into the cushions as he could, his head falling back.

How did his life get to this point? Liz was lovely, not that Rosario wasn’t, but why had he been pursuing someone ten years his junior?

He brought one hand through his hair, making it stand on end. He was beginning to fall back into doubt.

They’d spent the night together, in the literal sense of the words, but Rosario hadn’t exactly been enthusiastic. Tom couldn’t help but think about her reaction this morning when he’d asked if they were dating.

The buzzing of the door roused him from his spiral.

Maybe Luke decided to come rip him a new one after all.

The figure behind the door was not his lanky friend and conscious. He’d barely had time to greet her before she was on him. A small hand pulled his head down to hers and the other twined around his waist.

When they parted, Tom breathed, “So much for slow.”


	21. Chapter 21

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> So I know I'm the worst, but the hiatus is over! I'm not finished with this story yet- life just kind of got in the way. The excuses include but are not limited to: a new job, a breakup, and a death.
> 
> This past month or so has just been a mess and it's been hard to find the energy and time to write but I'm going to try to do better.
> 
> Hope you enjoy! Also hope you've stuck with me!

As she moved her mouth against his, their bodies pressed flush against each other, Rosario spared one last thought to how incredibly fucked up this was.

 But then Tom’s hand slipped up the back of her jumper to smooth over the bare skin of her lower back and any other thoughts she might have had were lost for good.

Tom pulled away slightly, his breath warm against her lips. “I’m so glad you’re here.”

Rosario didn’t bother to reply, pulling him into another searing kiss, all tongue and heat. 

Moaning, Tom’s hand tightened on her back, grinding his hips against her, while the other snaked between them to cup her breasts underneath her jumper.

Rosario twined a hand into his hair, twisting the short curls in her fingers, as the kiss grew frantic.

Pulling away again, Tom buried his face in the crook of her neck. “Fuck,” he spoke against her skin. Abandoning her breasts, he grabbed her ankle and wrapped it around him, using the opening to thrust against her core. The feeling of his already hard cock, obvious even through the layers of denim and fabric between them, against her sent another rush of heat and wet straight to her cunt. 

Placing sloppy kisses against her neck, Tom trailed back up to her mouth. His other hand mimicked the action of the first, hoisting her up into the air and forcing her against the front door. Her fingers automatically tangled in his hair, just like his into the flesh of her ass.

Rosario would have been surprised that he was strong enough to hold her up like that, but with his tongue in her mouth and the forceful thrusts she wasn’t capable of such thinking. 

Releasing her mouth to focus on the tops of her breasts, Tom muttered between kisses, “I’m going to fuck you so hard. God, I can’t wait to be buried inside you again. I’m going to leave you senseless.”

He dropped her suddenly, hands tearing at clothing until they both stood bare. Then he fell to his knees, wrapped her knee around his shoulder, and put his mouth on her. 

Swirling his tongue over her clit, Tom spread the wetness that dripped down her thighs. The wood was cool against her back but his mouth so hot. He splayed his fingers over her ass, pressing his face as far between her thighs as he could.

Tom ate her like he was a starving man at the feast and she the plate of fruits. She couldn’t hold in the loud gasp as he slipped his tongue inside of her, lapping up her clit and back down to plunge into her quickly.

Moaning, Rosario tugged on his hair again. Her hips, framed by his warm hands, unconsciously writhed into his face as she chased the pleasure his mouth gave her.

He dipped his tongue into her again, further this time, and Rosario’s legs began to shake. A familiar tension was building inside of her, with an unfamiliar intensity. His mouth was talented- lip, tongue, and teeth worked together to dance against and tease her.

Beneath her panting chest, she saw Tom glance up at her. His blue eyes were so hot, so focused. Studious, even. Rosario felt like she had seen that look in his eyes before, when he was deep into a book. Tom on his knees in front of her was a bizarre but intensely hot sight. With the height difference, he was almost always looking down on her, even when they were sitting. A sense of power, as hot and intense as the pleasure building in her sex, surged through her.

The smooth front of his teeth slicked over her clit.

Crying out, she was only vaguely aware of her fingernails scraping against the wood behind her as she came. Tom’s hands pinned down her shuddering hips, trapping her. His mouth didn’t stop until he had drained every last drop of overwhelming pleasure from her.

Finally, finally, he let her go. Sitting back on his heels, Tom smirked as he watched her shiver. His turned lips were still glossy.

Unable to stand on her shaking legs, Rosario began to slide bonelessly down the wall with a breathless laugh.

“Oh, no you don’t,” Tom was on his feet and yanking her up with alarming speed. Roughly he flipped her over, pinning her face-first into the wall. “I’m not done with you yet, darling,” he breathed lowly into her ear. The dark tone of his voice made the words sound almost threatening. Rosario knew it was more of a promise.

She felt him begin to stroke himself furiously behind her before running the soft head of his cock over her ass. “I haven’t had mine yet.”

His panting breaths were loud as he rubbed himself in the curve of her ass.

“Don’t you- oh god- want the bedroom?” Her question dissolved in a moan. His left hand danced over her clit while his right began to guide his cock into her.

“No,” he grunted. “Want you here.” With a swift deep thrust, he filled her completely. His hand slipped up to her waist to force the arch of her back. Her breasts bounced against the door, the brief touch of cold wood teased her nipples, with each pound of his thin hips.

She had forgotten how overwhelming sex was with Tom. He stimulated each and every one of her senses from the almost painful length inside her, to his sweet ragged breath just behind her ear, and to the sweeter, nasty things he muttered. 

“That’s it… Take it, baby. Uh, you’re so good for me… Fuck…”

The sensitivity from her last orgasm and Tom’s vicious rhythm meant she was already so close. The smack of his balls against her clit sent delicious shocks through her.

 She was just on brink of shattering again when Tom roughly pulled out of her. The loss of contact almost stung.

 "What are you doing?!”  Rosario could barely recognize her own whiny voice it was so shaky with need.

 “Sorry,” he flipped her around, his hands moving under her ass to hold her up against the wall. “I can’t come like that.” Rosario’s legs wrapped around him instinctively.

Filling her up completely, he grunted, “I need to see your face.”

Her breath hitched in her throat from both the words and his sudden entrance. Leaning forward, Tom rested his forehead against hers and began to move again. It was a different rhythm this time- still deep, still overwhelming, but slow and purposeful. His eyes bore into hers until, with a great shudder, he finished. With a final erratic thrust and a groan, he streamed into her. 

Rosario couldn’t help the gasp as he pulled out this time. She could already feel the soreness from being without him a month.

Chuckling, Tom released her and helped ease her down the wall. “I’m glad we didn’t wait.”

“Me too.” She brushed a kiss over his cheek, her lips falling just below his sharp cheekbones.

 The smile he gave her was glorious. “Let’s get to bed. I’m still not done with you yet.”

 

 

 


End file.
